The 2023 offseason was underwhelming, with Chris Drury throwing the proverbial stuff at the wall–in terms of league minimum contracts–and seeing what sticks. As we dive into our 2024 Erik Gustafsson report card, it’s clear Drury hit on one of those bargains, with Gustafsson being one of the top bargains in the entire NHL last season. Sometimes, not all heroes wear capes.
The start of Gustafsson’s one year in New York was met with low expectations. We knew he had the potential to be a solid signing, but he flew under the radar and it benefited the Blueshirts. Despite the solid underlying numbers, Gustafsson was still projected to be the 3LD for most of the season, aiming to give Braden Schneider an NHL caliber partner for an entire season.
Gustafsson played 76 games for the Blueshirts, the most since his career-best 2018-2019 season (79 games, 17-43-60 line). Gus rejoined Peter Laviolette for the one season, putting up 6-25-31 (7th on the Rangers) while playing primarily third pair minutes with minimal powerplay time.
But of course, we have to mention that month where Gustafsson played on the top pair with Ryan Lindgren after Adam Fox’s early season knee injury. Losing Fox could have been a death blow to their President’s Trophy season, but instead Gustafsson filled in nicely. In that one month span Fox was out, Gustafsson averaged over 20 minutes a night and put up a goal and 10 assists, including points in 9 of those 10 games.
The Rangers went 7-2-1 in that span.
Gustafsson played well, filled in for Fox, put up potentially career reviving numbers for a second straight year, and was a steady presence on the third pair. He was simply excellent defensively and did a good job helping move the puck up the ice. He was able to turn that performance into a $4 million contract over two years with Detroit, more than doubling his salary with the Rangers.
Gustafsson was brought in to stabilize the third pair, prepare Schneider for more minutes, and give the Rangers more depth and balance to the force lineup. He did exactly that. He wasn’t flashy. He wasn’t consistent. But he did everything he was expected to do based on his role, and then more.
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