Braden Schneider knows there’s nothing he can do until the decisions arrive. But once the Rangers season ends next week, the 24-year-old defenseman and former first-round pick will become a restricted free agent.
That means he could receive a qualifying offer worth $2.64 million. That means he could be eligible to sign an offer sheet or sign a deal with the Rangers — or even get traded, depending on how the different variables fall into place.
But even amid those unknowns, Schneider “for sure” hopes something works out to keep him with the Blueshirts long term.
“I feel like being a Ranger is something that I’m very proud of and I love being,” Schneider told The Post after practice Friday in Tarrytown ahead of a season-closing road trip, “and obviously they gave me my opportunity to be an NHLer. I feel I’ve grown a lot as a person and a player, and still got a lot of growing to do, for sure, but it’s something that, yeah, it would be great if that was the case. But we’ll see what happens.”
It’s the second consecutive season when the Rangers are approaching this juncture with a young defenseman. Last year, it was K’Andre Miller, who was tendered the qualifying offer and then traded to the Hurricanes before inking an eight-year deal.
When Miller navigated restricted free agency last year, Schneider paid attention, he said. He knew that was going to be him once the 2025-26 season concluded. Schneider, who has struggled at times this year while recording two goals and 18 points offensively, has recently skated with rookie Drew Fortescue.
Entering next season, the Blueshirts have Adam Fox, Vladislav Gavrikov, Will Borgen, Matthew Robertson, Urho Vaakanainen and now Fortescue under contract. But with the Rangers in the middle of a rebuild, anything can change.
Fox’s cryptic comments in February — about delaying conversations about his future until the offseason — loom. Vaakanainen has fallen out of their regular defensive pairings. Fortescue could start the 2026-27 campaign with AHL Hartford after his first taste of NHL life.
There could be turnover on the blue line, and among the pressing questions the Rangers need to answer — something that directly correlates to the amount of upheaval they’ll encounter — is the future of Schneider.
“Obviously, you talk to guys and ask kinda what it’s all about,” Schneider said of being a restricted free agent. “But … it’s something that really, until we get to it, it’s — not much I can do about it but keep playing good hockey. And I feel like down the stretch, that’s something I’ve been doing, and yeah, we’ll see what happens. I’m excited to see how it pans out.”
Fox was named the Rangers’ nominee for the 2025-26 King Clancy Memorial Trophy, which is given annually to the NHL player who “best exemplifies leadership qualities on and off the ice and has made a noteworthy humanitarian contribution in his community.”
Both of the Rangers’ prospects whose teams made the Frozen Four — North Dakota State defenseman EJ Emery (2024 first-round pick) and Michigan forward Malcolm Spencer (2025 second-round pick — were eliminated in the national semifinals Thursday night.
