Word around town is the Rangers have imported a new employee from the land that gave us Henrik Lundqivst. 25-year-old Andreas Jämtin is the newest member of the Ranger organization, but it’s the reputation that follows the Swede that may be most interesting to Ranger fans.

A former 2001 5th round draft pick of the newly-minted Stanley Cup champs, the Detroit Red Wings, Jämtin has been described both here and abroad as an agitator and a pest, one in the vain of the Pens’ Jarkko Ruutu or Sean Avery. Of course, the first thought that came into my head, and I’m sure yours, revolves around why the Blueshirts felt the need to sign a kid in the Sean Avery mold if they already have Sean Avery himself. The original, as TNT likes to proclaim regarding “Law & Order,” is the best. So, does a signing like this foreshadow the departure of the Annoying One from the World’s Most Famous Arena?

Well, we won’t know the answer to that question for at least a few more weeks once the NHL’s free agency gets underway on July 1st, but it’s important not to read too much into something like this. For one, at 25, Jämtin is past the age when most players who are going to get to the NHL do. Also, while he was drafted by the Red Wings, the best team in hockey and an organization that has an impressive mastery over evaluating Swedish hockey, they’re also the same team that decided to end their relationship by not offering him a contract. Most importantly however, unlike Fabian Brunnstrom, who emerged out of nowhere earlier this season as a “can’t-miss prospect” that had slipped through the cracks and was later signed by the Dallas Stars with the guarantee of significant NHL playing time next season, Jämtin will have to have a heck of a training camp and preseason to get a spot on a Ranger team that already has a glut of future 3rd and 4th liners toiling within the prospect ranks.

The Avery dilemma aside, there are some interesting things to think about where Jämtin is concerned. Jamtin, at 6′0” and 200 lbs., isn’t the biggest player on the ice, but, like Avery, he doesn’t show any signs of fear. Jämtin spent much of the past five seasons with HV71 Jonkoping of the Swedish Elite League, but his offensive output was minimal prior to the last couple of seasons. In 2006-07, Jämtin notched new SEL career-highs of 14 goals, 11 assists and 25 points in 49 games, but he topped those numbers last season, with 17 goals, 13 assists and 30 points in 51 games. HV71 finished first in the league and won the championship last season, as well as in 2004, with Jämtin a part of both squads.

Jämtin also played for TPS Turku of the Finnish League for most of the 2005-06 season, where he scored 8 goals and added 7 assists in 37 games.

It’s unlikely that Jämtin will make the Rangers out of training camp, but with a two-way contract, he’ll be able to show his stuff in Hartford, but his value to the organization will certainly increase should Avery walk away this summer.