The New York Rangers’ season ended on Saturday night, as they fell to the Florida Panthers by a 2-1 final score in Game 6. With it, they are preparing to make some adjustments to their group during the offseason.
One of the Rangers’ most notable free agents is veteran forward Blake Wheeler. The 37-year-old winger just completed his 16th season in the NHL, but there’s a real chance that it could be his last.
While speaking to reporters, including Vince Z. Mercogliano, Wheeler shared that he is not sure if he will play next season. In addition, he noted that he is planning to talk about his plans with his wife and would like to be around his kids.
Wheeler appeared in 54 games this season with the Rangers, where he had nine goals, 21 points, and a plus-2 rating. He notably suffered a serious leg injury in mid-February that took it away the rest of his regular season.
However, after it seemed that Wheeler wouldn’t play another game, he showed great determination and made a surprising return for Game 4 against the Panthers. Unfortunately, he notably took a penalty in overtime that led to the Cats’ game-winning goal.
We will now need to wait and see what Wheeler decides from here. If he does officially decide to hang up the skates, the Plymouth, Minnesota native has had a very good career. In 1,172 career games split between the Bruins, Winnipeg Jets, and Rangers, he has 321 goals and 943 points. In addition, he was a longtime captain of the Jets and a two-time All-Star.