- The Athletic reports the Rangers expect to keep Alexis Lafrenière this offseason
- New York is taking calls but won’t move the former No. 1 pick unless a team blows them away
- Read below for Lafrenière’s hot finish and his projected role next season
Alexis Lafrenière looks like he’s staying put in New York.
Vince Mercogliano and Peter Baugh of The Athletic reported the expectation around the league is that the Rangers hold onto the 24-year-old winger this offseason. New York has taken calls on the former first overall pick, but it isn’t actively shopping him, and it would take a team blowing the front office away to change that.
Mercogliano laid out where the Rangers go from here:
His name floated through the rumor mill all summer, mostly because of how the season started for him. Then Lafrenière flipped it around.
He scored 14 goals and put up 28 points over his final 27 games. Lafrenière closed the year with 24 goals and 57 points in 82 games, a finish strong enough to make New York think twice about moving him.
That run also pushed him past 100 goals for his career, quieting some of the bust talk that trailed the former No. 1 pick early on.
The contract backs up the commitment. Lafrenière is signed through 2031-32 on a seven-year, $52.15 million extension that carries a $7.45 million cap hit.
Mercogliano confirmed those terms when the deal got done:
New York looks ready to build on the hot stretch instead of selling low. Mercogliano expects Lafrenière to open 2026-27 on a line with Mika Zibanejad and rookie Gabriel Perreault.
Buffalo hosts the draft Friday with trade chatter everywhere, but the Rangers sound like a team that wants to keep its winger and bet on that second half being real.
