New York Rangers: What is fair trade value for Nick Holden?

The New York Rangers appear to be heading towards a fire sale with deals to be made. What could they get in a deal for their soon to be unrestricted free agent defenseman?

The fatal flaw of this year’s Rangers team has been the defense. Despite boasting names like Kevin Shattenkirk, Ryan McDonagh, and Brady Skjei, they just could not lay the foundation for victory. Among those who have hamstrung the unit is veteran defenseman Nick Holden.

When the New York Rangers acquired Nick Holden in June of 2016, it was expected he would help fill a gap on the bottom pair or even serve as the seventh defenseman. Holden had a fairly decent track record in Colorado. Rangers head coach Alain Vigneault got a phone call from Patrick Roy following the trade:

"“We were coming back from Buffalo and I got a call from Patrick saying to me, ‘You just got one of my better defensemen,’” Vigneault said. “Nick has come in and been a real good fit for us, no matter who he’s been playing with.”"

However, even with the positive review, Holden has underachieved in his two years with the Rangers. In his 125 games with the team, he has 43 takeaways and 93 giveaways. The shocking part is that he has had more giveaways with the Rangers than he did in Colorado. Holden played about 80 more games in Colorado and somehow has 10 more giveaways.

What should the Rangers pursue?

First and foremost, the Rangers should absolutely not pursue any older players. To be fair, the cutoff age for a player that is involved in this deal should be no more than 28. Realistically, the Rangers should pursue younger players and more likely a draft pick. Having acquired Holden for a fourth-round pick, it would likely be asking too much to get more than that.

Pursuing a depth player to play wing would not be a bad choice, considering the amount of cutting down the forward group may experience this deadline. Overall, it may just be easier on the team to trade for picks instead.

Some examples of similar trades

A player with similar stats this season is Jamie Oleksiak. The big left-handed defenseman was moved from the Stars to Pittsburgh in December. In exchange, the Penguins gave up a conditional fourth-round pick
Similarly, Josh Archibald was traded alongside goalie Sean Maguire and a sixth-round pick for veteran goalie Michael Leighton. Arizona received Archibald, Maguire and the pick, with the Pittsburgh Penguins acquiring Leighton.
If the Rangers find a buyer who might over-value Holden, a trade similar to the one the Panthers made in mid-September dealing Jason Demers for Jamie McGinn could happen. Realistically, this was an outright fleecing, the Rangers would need to take advantage of another team

Next: Lundqvist should only play 50 percent of the Rangers' remaining games

Despite all the trade talks, the Rangers do not have to be in trouble. As long as the Rangers brass makes solid choices, and get good players in this rebuilding effort, it can go much smoother. However, do not expect to get Connor McDavid in return for Holden.

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