Stability at the top is often necessary for a successful rebuild.
That appears to be the course the New York Rangers will follow, as Larry Brooks of the New York Post reported the organization will keep its two most senior hockey decision-makers - president Glen Sather and general manager Jeff Gorton - in the fold through next season.
Sather has been with the Rangers since 2000 and later signed an extension to remain with the club through the 2018-19 campaign. The five-time Stanley Cup champion previously served as GM of the Rangers up until 2015, when Gorton assumed the role.
Gorton joined the Rangers in 2007, and was later promoted to director of player personnel and then to assistant GM before taking over the top job. Before that, he spent 14 seasons in the hockey operations department of the Boston Bruins.
The Rangers currently sit two points outside of a playoff spot, and the team's place in the standings has seen Sather and Gorton decide that a retooling is needed to build a winner.
That could mean the team loses some "familiar faces" ahead of the Feb. 26 trade deadline, which the two executives co-wrote in a letter to the Rangers' fan base on Thursday.
Veterans Rick Nash, Michael Grabner, and Ryan McDonagh are among the players who could be suiting up elsewhere in the coming weeks.
Despite not winning the Stanley Cup since 1994, the Rangers have qualified for the playoffs in each of the past seven seasons.
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