Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images
With New York Rangers president and general manager Chris Drury announcing the team’s intentions to retool the roster, trade rumors have begun to run rampant regarding multiple players.
That includes Braden Schneider, who, throughout his Rangers tenure, hasn’t been the subject of much trade speculation.
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For many years, Schneider was perceived to be part of the Blueshirts’ core and someone who would emerge as a cornerstone piece of the future.
However, for essentially the first time in his Rangers tenure, there has been serious chatter that the team will look to move Schneider.
The 24-year-old defenseman is set to become a restricted free agent after the 2025-26 season comes to a close, leaving his future in New York uncertain.
Schneider reiterated that he loves playing for the Rangers, but what ultimately may transpire before the March 6th NHL Trade Deadline is out of his control.
“I don’t have any social media or anything like that, so it’s not like I’m running into it a whole lot,” Schneider said of trade rumors. “Obviously, you hear about the noise and stuff, and it sucks to hear because of the expectation that we had this year.
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“I love being a Ranger, it’s awesome. Just the results this year it makes it tough. It’s one of those things that you understand. It’s stuff that at this point is out of our control, and whatever happens happens, but I keep my focus here in this room with my teammates and still trying to get wins and get better each day.”
Through 56 games this season, Schneider described his game as “up and down”.
Despite continuing to provide a physical presence for the Rangers and attempting to make subtle improvements in creating chances offensively, Schneider’s plus/minus rating of -14 is the lowest of his career.
Holding himself to a high standard when it comes to defending, Schneider has been frustrated with the number of goals against he’s been on the ice for.
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“I feel like this year, it’s crazy because we’ve been getting scored against a lot. I take a lot of pride in obviously not getting scored against and being a mindless player. On a team that’s struggling you always want to do more,” Schneider said. “I think throughout the course of the year, I’ve done a better job at getting pucks to the net, whereas earlier on, it was really hitting a lot of shin pads or missed the net or missing chances that you should capitalize on, and things like that…
“I think it’s hard to feel good about your game at times. My main goal is not to get points or anything like that, it is to get wins. When you are not getting wins, you feel like you need to do more.”
Schneider’s rise into the Rangers’ lineup came as the team was experiencing some incredible success, including two trips to the Eastern Conference Final.
The young blueliner is learning more about the business side of hockey, watching the same core group of players being broken up over the past year and a half, and is really reaching a boiling point now.
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A lot could change both for the Rangers and for Schneider from an individual standpoint, and he knows that he must be prepared for all possible scenarios.
“It’s probably the hardest thing about being a professional hockey player is building these relationships with these guys over a course of a couple years, and you don’t perform as a team, and it’s time to make changes,” Schneider said. “That’s the way it goes, and it sucks. You always wish that you could have had the results to keep the team together, because we really do have a great group of guys in here. It’s sad to see some guys go but at the same time, it’s the business of things. I think everyone understands what the expectation is when you’re not not meeting it, you’re gonna have to make those decisions. So it’s a double edged sword, where it’s sad, but at the same time, you have to understand what’s going on.”
