New York Rangers: 4 teams that may want to add center by trade deadline
The New York Rangers will likely be sellers at the 2019 trade deadline. Which teams will be calling about their veteran centers?
It’s no secret that the New York Rangers were trying to deal one of Ryan Spooner or Vladislav Namestnikov before and after this year’s NHL Draft. In fact, there was a time where everyone around the team, be it the fan base or the media, expected one of the two, if not both, to be off the roster come training camp.
But here we are, just weeks away from camp and both players are sitting pretty with new, matching two-year contracts. Both players figure to be somewhere in the Rangers’ middle-six going forward.
But it is definitely within reason to believe that the team will continue to shop the two 2018 trade deadline acquisitions. General manager Jeff Gorton wants both players to get off to quick starts so they can boost their trade value from where it’s at now; the cellar.
Gorton knows that, for the second straight year, the Rangers will be trade deadline sellers, looking to add future draft picks and prospects to their already growing prospect pool. And there will be plenty of playoff contenders looking to add some center depth to their middle-six. And that’s where the Rangers could pounce.
Who are those teams, and what are some reasonable assets that can be offered for the Rangers’ veteran pivots?
San Jose Sharks
On paper, the Sharks have enough depth at center to make a deep playoff run. Veterans Joe Pavelski, Logan Couture and Joe Thornton are all returning, and the team has a few of their top prospects waiting in the wings for some ice time at the pivot.
But we all know that the team is going to go all in again while their core is still in tact this season. After all, this team has been the model of consistency over the last 15 years now that the Red Wings’ empire has fallen. General manager Doug Wilson has never been gun-shy about making a big trade-deadline move either.
But while the Sharks have that aforementioned depth, one of those key pieces (Joe Thornton) has torn his ACL and MCL in each of the last two seasons. At age 39, nobody knows how those old legs will hold up. And while the team has plenty of other players who have played center in the past, most of them are primarily left or right wings.
The Sharks don’t have their 2018 first round pick, but they have two second round picks to work with. Would a second round pick for Vladislav Namestnikov get the job done for both sides? I think it could work on a market where so many teams hesitate to sell.
Winnipeg Jets
I wrote about the Jets and how they could effect the Rangers a few days ago but I’ll try to reiterate those points here as well.
The Jets had an amazing breakout season in 2017-18 that led them all the way to the Western Conference Finals. One of the big reasons they got their was their ballsy trade deadline acquisition of Paul Stastny. Stastny left the team for the Vegas Golden Knights on July 1, and Winnipeg really didn’t do anything to negate that loss.
While they have enough center depth to get by at least for the start of the season, the team will definitely want to add a middle-six center by the end of the season.
That’s where the Rangers come in.
If the team feels that Kevin Hayes won’t re-sign with them after the season ends, Winnipeg would definitely be a team with interest. He’d probably slot right into their third line, right where Stastny was, to be their shutdown center on an extremely deep offense.
The Jets have few remaining B-level or greater prospects waiting outside the NHL since a majority of their prospect pool have graduated and are already on the big club. One intriguing prospects is for Buffalo Sabres second round pick Brendan Lemieux. The Jets also have all of their first and second round picks going forward so they are kind of the ideal trade partner for the Rangers right now.
Philadelphia Flyers
The Flyers are back to relevance and could surprise some people as one of the most improved teams of 2018-19. Last season saw the Rangers trade with a huge rival in the New Jersey Devils. Maybe this year it’s the Rangers and Flyers turn.
The Broad Street Bullies have one of the most exciting young defense corps in the game, along with a top goalie prospect awaiting his debut date and some top flight forwards in their top-six. What they don’t have is bottom six depth.
While Giroux and Couturier are cemented on the top two lines (although they sometimes play on a line together) another center for their middle-six would be huge. The Rangers have a few of those guys and their names as Namestnikov and Spooner.
The Flyers have all their draft picks going forward, as well as an additional third and seventh round pick in 2019. This bodes well for what the Rangers would ask for their two trade chips.
The other interesting layer to this is the contract of Jori Lehtera, the man who was supposed to be the team’s third line center when they acquired him from the Blues in the Brayden Shenn trade. In 62 games last season, Lehtera tallied just three goals and five assists and has another year of his $4.7 million contract on the books.
While the team has $10 million in cap space to work with, if they want to make additional big moves at the deadline if they’re in contention for the Metropolitan Division crown, dealing Lehtera to the Rangers could help, which would bring back an additional asset to New York.
Next to the Jets, these two teams make the most sense when scouting for trade partners.
Carolina Hurricanes
Outside of Jordan Staal and Viktor Rask, the Hurricanes don’t have another true center on their roster as of now. The team is loaded with middle-six wings and a pretty scary defense.
The Rangers could look to improve the defense here instead of garner futures here.
One would think that a Kevin Hayes for Justin Faulk one-for-one deal would work out perfectly for both sides here.
At age 26, Faulk could be an interesting piece for the Rangers going forward. He has two years left under contract until he’s an unrestricted free agent. The Rangers may not want to re-sign him after that deal to a contract longer than five years, but they could cross that bridge later.
Faulk has been involved in trade rumors all summer long and with a crowded defense that has four other defenders signed for at least the next three seasons at at least $4 million annually, it doesn’t make sense for the Hurricanes to invest more money in Faulk where they have glaring holes elsewhere on their roster.
Next. How one draft pick could define Jeff Gorton's career. dark
Hayes would slot right into their second line where he’d have a very similar role to what he has now with the Rangers. He’d be the veteran center that could help lead the charge for a Hurricanes team looking to get back to relevance.