I suppose the problem with my post is I said 'drafting' rather than developing.
Well so the first point here is that developing a kid isn't precisely the same as drafting them. Trading for a kid while they are still a prospect should be considered developing them, if we see something in them the team trading them did not.
In that sense, McDonagh, Lindgren, Hajek, John Moore have all been developed by the rangers. Girardi was absolutely developed by us, by being the first team to reach out and see his potential. Neal Pionk and Matt Gilroy were also developed by us, though a number of teams were vying for their services. They improved as Rangers players.
Then you throw in Sauer and Del Zotto, who both absolutely made an impact for the NY Rangers, just had their careers here shortened for two distinct reasons. It's unquestionably a better track record than at forward unless you limit development purely to drafted-to-veteran Rangers tracks. Admittedly, I used drafting as a shorthand, but I kind of meant to say it seems as though we've seen more successful prospect to NHL regular transitions at D than at forward, despite the fact that only 33% of NHL skating positions are on the blueline.
Well if you include Sauer and Del Zotto you have to include guys like Miller, Kreider, and Buchnevich.