The Rangers expect Alexis Lafreniere, the No. 1 pick in the 2020 NHL Draft, will be an impact player in his rookie season. Lafreniere is penciled in as the left wing on the third line, likely playing with 21-year-old center Filip Chytil.
Lafreniere arrived in the New York area from his home in Saint-Eustache, Quebec, in November and is training and living with a billet family in Connecticut.
"He has the whole package," Rangers assistant general manager Chris Drury said. "His skating, his sense, his shot, his passing, you name it, it's all very elite. His internal drive is exceptional."
The Rangers are comfortable with their returning defensemen, even if there are issues to iron out, namely filling an opening on the left side they created by trading Marc Staal to the Detroit Red Wings.
Quinn said the Rangers could move a right-handed defenseman (Jacob Trouba, Tony DeAngelo or Adam Fox) to the left side.
DeAngelo, who led New York defensemen with 53 points (15 goals, 38 assists) last season, is the most likely candidate, but Quinn said he knows Fox would be comfortable too. It's unlikely they ask Trouba to switch.
K'Andre Miller and/or Tarmo Reunanen, two of New York's top defenseman prospects and each a left-handed shot, could play well enough in training camp to win a job and remove the need to move a righty to the left side.
"That probably is the one position that we're going to have to really let it play out," Quinn said.
The Rangers have far fewer uncertainties than they've had entering the past two seasons, fueling their optimism.
"We feel real good about where we are," New York president John Davidson said. "We've come a long way. There's been some very difficult decisions, but to get to that end, to the championship, this is what you have to do."