The New York Rangers will be heading into the offseason as a team seeking to improve following missing the playoffs and finishing in last place in the conference. However, there is a lot of work for them to do if they want to be better. The 2025-26 campaign was a massive failure for New York. As the team continues to try to retool, finishing in last place is a tough pill to swallow for the organization. Now, this summer is going to be a pivotal one. Since they missed the playoffs the last two seasons, expectations will be high for them to improve, and that starts in the offseason. Fortunately, the Rangers are in a good position to get better. They have cap space, draft picks, and some tradable assets. However, they will need things to come together well for them, especially since this isn’t the strongest free agency class. New York could be looking to make some improvements on the trade market, and one option for them could be Tomas Hertl from the Las Vegas Knights. Vegas Golden Knights center Tomas Hertl / Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn ImagesWhile the Knights are trying to make it to the Stanley Cup Final, they are going to have some tough decisions to make this offseason following what they hope will be a championship year. Even though the salary cap is going up, the Knights are still going to be hard-pressed to make moves this summer. After adding Rasmus Andersson, they would likely want to extend the talented defenseman and keep him around long-term. That isn’t going to be cheap for the team. If they do end up signing Andersson, that could mean that they will look to move on from Hertl. The talented forward is set to make over $6 million for the next three years, and moving that contract might be something that Las Vegas looks to explore. With the center position being a massive need for the Rangers, especially if they look to deal Vincent Trocheck, Hertl could be an option for them. Due to his contract, the price tag in order to acquire him likely wouldn’t be too high. With the deal being more of a cap dump by the Knights, the Rangers are in a good spot to take on salary. While there will be a lot of moving parts from now until then, Hertl will be a name for the Rangers to keep an eye on.