NEW YORK — The New York Rangers have re-signed veteran defenseman Chad Ruhwedel to a one-year contract.
General manager Chris Drury announced the signing Friday in a move that offers 23-year-old Zac Jones competition for a spot on the team’s third pairing. Terms were not immediately available.
Ruhwedel was acquired from Pittsburgh in early March and played in five games the rest of the season as New York advanced to the Eastern Conference final, losing to the eventual Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers. He finished the season with a goal, three assists, 90 hits and 44 blocked shots in 52 games.
The Rangers lost veteran starter Erik Gustafsson to the Detroit Red Wings in free agency. Defenseman Ryan Lindgren and Braden Schneider are restricted free agents.
Jones played an NHL career-high 31 games this past season, finishing with two goals and seven assists. He filled in well when Adam Fox and Jacob Trouba were sidelined this season. K’Andre Miller is the other starter.
Ruhwedel has appeared in 364 NHL games. He won a Stanley Cup with the Penguins in 2017. The 34-year-old was originally signed as an undrafted free agent by the Sabres in 2013 following a three-year career at the University of Massachusetts-Lowell.