With the All-Star break now behind us, the trade deadline looms large and is now less than a month away. Where does each team stand and what moves should they be looking to make? We continue our look around the league with the New York Rangers.
The Rangers opted to shake things up over the offseason with Chris Drury being promoted to GM and Gerard Gallant taking over as their new head coach. The roster was also reshaped and the results have certainly been promising as they’ve gone from a team that missed the playoffs to one that is within striking distance of first place in the East. As a result, Drury will be busy looking to add but with their salary cap situation, they will be balancing the short term and the long term with any acquisitions.
Record
32-13-5, 3rd in the Metropolitan
Deadline Status
Buyer
Deadline Cap Space
$20MMM today, $33.5MM in full-season space, 0/3 retention slots used, 45/50 contracts used per CapFriendly.
Upcoming Draft Picks
2022: NYR 1st, NYR 2nd, STL 2nd, NYR 4th, WPG 4th, NYR 5th, NYR 6th
2023: NYR 1st, NYR 2nd, NYR 3rd, NYR 4th, NYR 5th, NYR 6th, NYR 7th
Trade Chips
Most contenders wouldn’t want to necessarily subtract from their current roster but it’s an option that New York may need to consider with backup goaltender Alexandar Georgiev. The 26-year-old has made it known that he’d like to play more but with Igor Shesterkin in the fold, that’s not going to happen barring injury. The pending restricted free agent carries a $2.425MM cap hit and is owed a qualifying offer of $2.65MM, one that might be a bit too pricey for them for next season. There are some teams that would likely want to get a longer look at Georgiev to see if he could be a longer-term option although the Rangers would be wise to get another goaltender if they opted to move Georgiev now with veteran Keith Kinkaid serving as their third-string option.
Things have not gone well for winger Vitali Kravtsov in his time with the Rangers. The 22-year-old didn’t make the team out of training camp, went back to the KHL, and it’s clear a change of scenery would be beneficial. However, considering he was the ninth overall selection in 2019, his draft status may carry some weight and be appealing to a team looking for a prospect that’s a little more developed over a draft pick. He’s a restricted free agent this summer but it’s hard to see him commanding a big raise on his $925K AAV since he only has 22 games under his belt.
Young defensemen are always desirable commodities to rebuilding teams and New York has one on its roster in Libor Hajek that is struggling to get into the lineup. He has played in just 14 NHL games this season plus five more on a conditioning assignment but is only a year removed from playing in nearly 80% of their games last year. He signed for his qualifying offer last summer for just over $874K and the lack of playing time doesn’t give him a case for much of a raise. With youngster Braden Schneider starting to establish himself, the path to playing time is even steeper now for Hajek and he seems like a logical player that could be added into a trade.
The three-year, $7.5MM given to blueliner Patrik Nemeth raised some eyebrows and he has had a limited role on the third pairing so far without doing a whole lot. If Drury looks to bring someone in with term left on their contract, Nemeth is the type of player they could try to use as a salary offset.
Other Potential Trade Chips: F Morgan Barron ($925K through 2022-23), F Austin Rueschoff ($842K, RFA), F Evan Vierling (unsigned prospect)
Team Needs
1) Forward Depth: Injuries have thinned out New York’s forward depth at times this season and has left their bottom six group a little weaker than they’d like. Replacing Sammy Blais’ grit is one area they’d likely want to add but bringing in a two-way player that can score a bit and kill penalties is another element that would certainly be beneficial for them to add.
2) Top-Four Defender: Adam Fox and Jacob Trouba are proven top-four pieces but after that, New York’s back end primarily consists of younger players or depth veterans like Nemeth or Jarred Tinordi. A veteran that can allow them to take a bit of pressure off their younger players would help with an emphasis on being able to play a key defensive role.
3) Long-Term Center: Mika Zibanejad has his extension for next season so he’ll be in place for the long haul. But Ryan Strome’s fate remains in question and Filip Chytil likely isn’t ready to step onto the second line if Strome doesn’t re-sign. If there’s a way to get a long-term second pivot, that would be a nice pickup for Drury even if it means that Strome winds up moving on.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Maybe Stevie can fulfill some of those needs for NYR,
Nemestikov and Leddy both 1/2 salary retained for Hajek and Kravtsov
And if NYR trades Georgiev the Wings could trade Griess to them as well for a 3rd
Why would the Rangers trade back for Namestnikov when it was a disaster the first time they had him? They traded him as fast as they could. And Leddy is horrible. There’s no way the Rangers are moving any of the players you mentioned for bench players.
what sort of return could a Clint Frazier, Miguel Andujar, Alexander Georgiev, and Vitali Kratsov package get? asking on behalf of the NYC 4-sport fan?
Multi-team trade should net them Mike Trout, Juan Soto, Connor McDavid, and Patrick Mahomes. But, honestly, I think they would be giving up too much!
So, the Rangers waived Tinordi last month so I’m not sure they’d be relying on him, and not sure why they’d be looking for a vet to play on the top 4 on D – the current 4 are solid and the 5/6 are probably better than most of the D players available. Defense isn’t an area they need help in, but actually have strength to trade from with Jones and Lundqvist rotating the last spot.
As for the players mentioned up for grabs, agree on all of them. I think one last attempt to get Kravstov to commit himself will be made – the talent is certainly there. Georgiev, Hajek, Chytil and draft picks could be used to get that 2nd/3rd line center. Wouldn’t mind seeing the Rangers go after a solid top center that can replace Strome next year when he walks.
Ben Chiarot and Christian Dvorak would be might useful for the Rags.
How about Anderson and Lekhonen instead….
For all the posturing on both sides, it wouldn’t surprise me in the slightest if Kravstov and Drury settled on showcasing him during the playoffs to facilitate a trade over the summer.
Our defense is fine. Author doesn’t seem to realize that Lindgren and Miller are playing just fine in the top 4. A veteran presence on the third pair isn’t necessary. Schneider removed that need with his physical play. Leave Jones there and call it a day.
Other notes:
1) The return for Hajek will be a 7th rounder, at best.
2) We will regret trading for JT Miller if that happens
3) The best play would be to resign Chytil as a cheap wing option and then try to retain Strome as best we can. Can’t do 8 years tho, it’ll kill us.
4) Georgiev will net us a 2nd rounder, with luck, but more likely a 3rd.
5) We’ll have to pay someone to take Nemeth’s contract off our hands.
6) LGR
1) let him walk
2) his contract would be doable not only for this year, but next year as well
3) Chytil at C3 is his ceiling, but probably C4 is reality
4) Georgiev could net a late first rounder, or even package him with a second rounder for a first, but I believe he’ll get packaged with others for a C
5) that was a complete mistake and lack of faith in the D corp
6) preach on
1) Get creative on structure to re-sign Strome
2) trade Nemeth for whatever you can get as they cannot afford him next year
3) Georgiev & Gauthier to Vegas for Reilly Smith
4) Since Stevie Y is the guy who took Hajek in 1st round and because Greiss and Staal won’t command a big return, Hajek and a 4th rounder for them. New backup G, Staal becomes a 6th/7th D and veteran presence, splitting tim with Jones
5) Chytil & Kravstov to SJ for Hertl
D pairs are Trouba/Miller, Fox/Lindgren and Schneider/Jones/Staal. Works for the playoffs and next year. Maybe Staal signs a cheap 1 year deal to be a 7th next year.
1st line remains Kreider/Mika/Laffy for playoffs and next year
2nd line for playoffs and next year is Bread/Srome/Kaako
4th line for playoffs and next year is Reaves/Goodrow/Rooney (assuming he re-signs)
3rd line ofr playoffs is Hertl/Smith/Hunt. Next year, Blais and Barron step in for the UFA departures
Rangers can’t resign Strome and acquire Hertl. They can’t even resign Strome next year unless some serious dumping occurs. Also, LaF, while playing RW right now, is naturally a LW, and if you somehow got Hertl and the cap goes away, LaF would be on that line. And you forgot about Lundqvist, who is considered a higher talent than Jones. No need for Staal.
Hello Brian,
I believe you’re missing something of the word ‘NYR’ between ‘STL 2nd,’ & ‘WPG 4th’. I guess it should be ‘NYR 4th’. Can you fix this? Please & thank you.
“2022: NYR 1st, NYR 2nd, STL 2nd, ‘NYR’, WPG 4th, NYR 5th, NYR 6th”