While the New York Rangers won’t know if they made a bad choice with their highest draft pick in years, it is time to revisit one clear choice that they made in June 2017. When the Blueshirts selected Andersson, they passed on a player that many thought was the consensus pick, Casey Mittelstadt. The Minnesota-born center went next to the Buffalo Sabres with the eighth pick.
One year ago, on Blue Line Station, we proposed that the selection of Andersson over Mittelstadt could end up defining Jeff Gorton’s career as an NHL general manager.
Both players have had a full year in the NHL under their belts.