This figures to be an interesting offseason for GM Chris Drury and the Rangers.

After putting together a historic regular season to secure the Presidents’ Trophy, New York ultimately fell short again in the playoffs, as they were overpowered by the Panthers during the Eastern Conference Finals.

With their star players failing to show up again when it mattered the most, it’s led to numerous questions over whether or not Drury should break up this core heading into next season and he’s said “nothing is off the table.”

What exactly that means remains to be seen.

Some feel this team is still good enough to run it back and compete for their ultimate goal, while others think they must shake things up after being dominated for another disappointing finish.

No matter which side you stand on Drury and company certainly have some big decisions to make over the next few months, but they also have some UFAs to focus on, and one of those is defenseman Erik Gustafsson.

Why the Rangers should re-sign Gustafsson…

Gustafsson had all the makings of one of the biggest steals of the summer.

He came in with prior knowledge of Peter Laviolette’s system, and after cracking a spot in the opening night lineup, he slotted in tremendously alongside youngster Braden Schneider on New York’s third pairing.

Gustafsson showcased some of his offensive upside, getting off to a roaring start, producing 12 assists and a total of 15 points over the first two months of the season before ultimately slowing things down.

Still, he proved to be a versatile option for New York, filling in nicely on the top defensive pairing and quarterbacking the top power-play unit when Adam Fox was sidelined due to a lower-body injury.

The former fourth-round pick also brought a strong veteran presence to the locker room and provided some big moments like scoring the opening goal just minutes into the Stadium Series matchup with the Islanders.

Hitting the open market again this offseason as an unrestricted free agent, the 32-year-old figures to be due for a little bit of a pay raise, but he should still be able to be had for relatively cheap.

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