NEW YORK, March 4, 2021 – The New York Rangers announced today that the team has agreed to terms with defenseman Mason Geertsen.
Geertsen, 25, had been playing with the Rangers’ American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Hartford Wolf Pack, on an AHL contract. He has skated in four games with Hartford this season, registering one assist, a plus-two rating, and 11 penalty minutes. Geertsen skated in 60 games in his first season with the Wolf Pack in 2019-20, recording eight assists and 109 penalty minutes. He ranked sixth in the AHL – and led AHL defensemen – in penalty minutes last season.
The 6-4, 221-pounder has skated in 281 career AHL games over parts of seven seasons (2014-15 – 2020-21), registering six goals and 40 assists for 46 points, along with 487 penalty minutes. Geertsen is one of four AHL players (and the only AHL defenseman) who have registered at least 100 penalty minutes in each of the last three seasons. In 2016-17, he helped the Colorado Eagles of the ECHL win the Kelly Cup as ECHL Champions, registering four points (one goal, three assists) and 42 penalty minutes in 19 playoff games. Geertsen attended Rangers Training Camp in 2019, and he skated in the team’s pre-season game on Sept. 20, 2019 at New Jersey.
The Drayton Valley, Alberta native was originally selected by the Colorado Avalanche in the fourth round, 93rd overall, of the 2013 NHL Entry Draft. Geertsen agreed to terms with the Wolf Pack on an AHL contract on Sept. 29, 2019.