New York Rangers: Who will be lost in the Expansion Draft?

Brandon Cohen- Antti Raanta

I am banking on two truths here for this to happen. First of all, I do not believe the Rangers are wise enough to trade an asset to the Las Vegas Golden Knights for them to select Nick Holden. Holden is the perfect player to approach Vegas with in that type of a deal, but my opinion is that New York believes Holden is a talented player.

Secondly, I do not believe the Las Vegas Golden Knights will properly identify the talent in Jesper Fast and Oscar Lindberg. George McPhee was a big name chaser in Washington, and while he will need to sign some youngsters, a pair of bottom six players do not scream excitement.

Those truths leave me with Michael Grabner and Antti Raanta as the two options. It’s a flip of the coin in my books, but I’ll guess McPhee opts for the goalie over the speedster.

David Bruce- Michael Grabner

Las Vegas is going to select Michael Grabner. There likely won’t be many solid goal scorers available, and Grabner scored 27 goals without getting any powerplay time. Grabner’s scoring prowess, speed, defensive ability and low cap hit will have a strong impact for Las Vegas.

It can be argued that Vegas will need a goaltender more, and thus, will be more likely to pick Antti Raanta. While that is possible, goalies can be had in trades or free agency a little easier than most. Vegas can get a better goaltender than Raanta by these means.

Vegas can give Grabner a top six roster spot, and with that, a chance to return to 30 goal territory if he has another hot season. Grabner would be a significantly valuable piece for a new team building its roster, and provides a good goal scoring touch for a low salary.

Dan Carrozzi- Nick Holden

The New York Rangers will lose Nick Holden in the expansion draft.

The Rangers must make the most of their opportunities this off-season to retool their defense. One of those will be the upcoming expansion draft for the Vegas Golden Knights.

Unless something changes, defensemen Ryan McDonagh, Marc Staal, and Dan Girardi will be protected by the Rangers. Fortunately, Brady Skjei is exempt from needing to be protected as well.

Of the remaining defensemen, Nick Holden appears to have the most value to the Golden Knights. Holden posted 34 points while playing top-4 minutes for the Rangers this past season.
However, the Rangers will have several more enticing options exposed, namely Antti Raanta, Michael Grabner, Oscar Lindberg, and Jesper Fast.

In order to make the Golden Knights select Holden as their official expansion draft pick, Rangers General Manager Jeff Gorton must offer them a bribe. This bribe may come in the form of a pick, prospect or potentially one of the aforementioned forwards like Jesper Fast.

It may seem like a steep price to pay to get rid of a player like Nick Holden, but that’s not the main objective here. The point of making Vegas select Holden is so that the Rangers do not lose an impact player, such as Raanta or Grabner, for nothing.

John Cavanagh- Jesper Fast

Jesper Fast isn’t a household name among hockey fans, but he has become loved by many Rangers fans. Fast isn’t flashy, and isn’t going to wow you with his skill set, but every team could use a player like Jesper Fast.

Fast is as reliable as they come, and has secured coach Alain Vigneault’s trust in almost any situation. He kills penalties, has great skating ability, and plays a hard-nosed physical game.

Fast can also skate anywhere in the lineup. Fast has been effective on the fourth line, and can also provide a role in the top six.

With a new team starting out like Vegas is, the Golden Knights will want to take someone they can trust, and someone who is steady and consistent.

That is why they will make sure Fast is taken from the Rangers, leaving the Rangers to fill a gaping hole in their lineup.

Logan Clements- Oscar Lindberg

The New York Rangers are almost certainly going to leave Oscar Lindberg unprotected in the expansion draft. Lindberg is a shutdown fourth line center, who is also able to contribute offensively. Lindberg has a third line center ceiling. His next contract will likely be a team friendly deal around two million dollars or less for several years.

Lindberg might not have the trade value of other Rangers players who will be left unprotected, such as Grabner and Raanta, but he fits the Golden Knight’s foreseeable need.

Teams tend to value their centers and will rightly do whatever they can to protect them. This means that the Vegas Golden Knights will be hard pressed to find good centers in the upcoming expansion draft. Lindberg is more than able to handle being a shutdown fourth pairing center or a third line center for the Golden Knights.

Because of this, I believe that the Golden Knights will select Oscar Lindberg in the expansion draft.

Garrett Gartino- Michael Grabner

When the Las Vegas Golden Knights take a look at their options there will be a handful of New York Rangers to choose from. It’s hard to see any scenario where a new team passes up on a player like Michael Grabner.

His skill set would allow the Golden Knights to create line mismatches and special teams units that propel teams to the top of the league. Following his first season in New York, Grabner’s value is at an all-time high.

Although another 27-goal season may be out of the question, Grabner is likely to provide a team solid two-way hockey regardless of where he plays next season. If GM Jeff Gorton is as smart as he seems, he will be preparing plan B for the team should they lose Grabner’s services.

Tim Haggerty- Michael Grabner

This June, the New York Rangers will expose Michael Grabner and the Las Vegas Golden Knights will take him.

This is going to be hard for the Rangers to swallow. However, they are one of the deeper teams in the league that is seriously hurt by the expansion draft.

Grabner is being exposed by process of elimination. The seven forwards the Rangers will be protect will likely be Stepan, Nash, Zibanejad, Hayes, Miller, Zuccarello, and Kreider. Grabner is the odd man out.

For Las Vegas, this decision couldn’t be any easier. A 30 plus goal scorer with a very affordable contract, on a team that doesn’t have many other assets to snag. Antti Raanta wouldn’t be a terrible pick, but there are other goalies around the league they could take.

The only thing that could steer Las Vegas away from Grabner would be a trade bribe. However, it seems unlikely the Rangers would give away a draft pick to save Grabner.

Karly Redpath- Michael Grabner

Michael Grabner will be the Rangers forward that we will see go to the Las Vegas Golden Knights in the expansion draft.

Grabner had a rebound season, notching 27 goals and a respectable 13 assists for a total 40 points in 76 regular season games.

The 29-year-old Austrian native proved that he can be a playmaker because of his speed. As a supplement to this dangerous attribute, he has the skill to not only finish on scoring chances but also served an integral role in 5-on-5 hockey and on the penalty kill.

26 of Grabner’s 27 goals this season  were scored when the Rangers played teams at even strength. He was plus-22 through the regular season and boasted an on-ice shooting percentage (used to determine how effective a player is at shooting and at setting up his teammates) of 11.8.

The Golden Knights picking up Grabner would give them a strong player that comes at a great price. At just $1.65 million dollars, they would get a player with strong skill for a minimal amount of money.

Grabner will be an unrestricted free agent at the end of the 2017-18 season. However, the Golden Knights need to establish their chemistry. It gives them a shot at acquiring a great asset, yet flexibility in the long run.

Assuming Grabner fits, they could approach they UFA issue when it comes to fruition.

George Ruggiero- Dan Girardi

The expansion draft for the new Las Vegas based team is approaching, and everyone is clamoring about who’s going to get protected by their teams, and those that will be exposed and drafted. I think the Rangers are going to try some addition by subtraction. Vegas will draft Dan Girardi.

Now, hear me out, Girardi played well in the playoffs, but his contract and poor regular season play overshadow that. The Rangers would be better off without him on the roster and are expected to buy him out. If the Rangers could get rid of him without the recapture charge, why wouldn’t they

However, to do so, the Rangers would have two challenges ahead of them. One is actually giving Girardi the ultimatum: either you waive your no movement clause and go to Vegas, or get bought out. Either way, he is no longer a Ranger at the start of next season.

The other challenge is finding another backup goaltender. After his performance last season, Antti Raanta is a high value commodity right now, and he could garner a first round draft pick, at least. Teams have the ability to trade with Vegas and agree to draft or not draft players in the expansion.

He brings a veteran presence and a large cap hit to a team that needs both. As such, I see the Rangers trading Raanta for a low draft pick and the guarantee that Vegas picks Dan Girardi in the expansion draft.

Lou Venditti- Jesper Fast

When the Rangers lose Jesper Fast in the expansion draft, I will be the least surprised person on Earth. Fast has grown into himself and his role tremendously over the years, and as every Rangers fan knows, life is suffering.

As soon as a player gets comfortable with the Rangers, they are inexplicably ripped away. It’s a true shame, because even Alain Vigneault likes Fast (who he affectionately calls “Quickie”)!

Fast has been one of the Rangers’ most reliable penalty killers, as well as a bottom six anchor, since joining the big club in 2014. He sees the whole ice, and plays defensively as well as he does offensively.

Every single team in the NHL could use a player as versatile and reliable as Jesper Fast, and the Golden Knights are going to be able to snag him for nothing.

Ben Whitney- Oscar Lindberg

Oscar Lindberg is the New York Rangers player most likely to be taken by the Las Vegas Golden Knights in the upcoming expansion draft.

If the Rangers protect the seven expected forwards, Jesper Fast and Oscar Lindberg are the top two options for Las Vegas. While Fast is a more complete and accomplished two way player, Lindberg has more offensive potential and a higher ceiling. Lindberg is still young enough to develop into a number three or maybe even a number two center.

But Nash comes off the books after next season and the Rangers don’t have many guys signed past the 2018-19 season. Stepan is not going anywhere.

Michael Grabner looked like a candidate early, but his late season goal scoring drought hurt his chances. He will also be thirty in October and is only signed for one more year. An expansion team will surely take a more long-term approach.

Antti Raanta is a possibility but I think Las Vegas will have other options in net. There’s a team still playing in Pittsburgh that can only protect one of their two stellar goaltenders.

Next: Who should the Rangers sign this off-season?

There are a lot of ways the Golden Knights can go with the Rangers, but I think Lindberg is the guy who will head west. His strong playoff performance will convince GM George McPhee to bring Lindberg to the desert.