The New York Rangers only have four picks going into the 2012 NHL Entry Draft. Their best selection is the 28th overall pick and they have nothing after the fourth round. However, the Rangers director of player personnel Gordie Clark doesn’t seem bothered by that.
“I don’t think there’s any (more) pressure (with just the four picks),” Clark told Andrew Gross of The Bergen Record. “It’s probably, in the last four five drafts, the best to do it because there isn’t a lot of talent in this draft, the second half of this draft, whereas we’ve always been excited about somebody to pick up (in the later rounds). We don’t really have that.”
Clark admitted that it’s still tough to see young, talented athletes get scooped up in the first round by other franchises while New York waits for its turn. Of course, the Rangers are in that position because they were superb in 2011-12.
Clark also wouldn’t rule out the possibility of the Rangers trading up “if there someone’s that going to slip to an area where we think we could get them.” That being said, the Rangers can only realistically jump up so high from their current position.
“At 28, we might be able to get into 20, maybe 20-25,” Clark speculated.
The Rangers two most recent first-round selections, J.T. Miller and Dylan McIlrath, haven’t broken into the NHL yet. However, their top pick in 2009, Chris Kreider, turned heads during the New York Rangers’ playoff run. On top of that, their first and second-round picks in 2008, Michael Del Zotto and Derek Stepan, have become big contributors for the Rangers.