Noah K. Murray/Associated Press
The Rangers knew the answers to their most pressing roster questions months ahead of their season opener against the Winnipeg Jets on Thursday night.
Henrik Lundqvist would most likely get goaltending help from his understudy, Alexandar Georgiev; the defensemen Brady Skjei and Jacob Trouba, a summer acquisition, would provide a new look on the blue line; and the prized free agent Artemi Panarin promised to be the type of high-end scoring threat the Rangers have been lacking.
But as a rebuild continues under the second-year coach David Quinn, the Rangers did not know who among their raft of young prospects would be part of the team after training camp.