For several years it was clear the Rangers front office was preparing Chris Drury for a larger management role, the organization even denied other teams the chance to interview him for their own GM opening. While it’s always a good strategy to have a plan in place for internal candidates and promotions, no one on this plane of existence could have guessed what would happen at the end of last year’s season and just how quickly Drury would be given the reins to the most valuable franchise in the NHL.
The Rangers were still in the midst of their rebuild, and expectations were that small steps would be taken with pieces added externally as both Gorton and Davidson saw fit.