New York Rangers: Trade target Nazem Kadri

With the Toronto Maple Leafs facing a major cap crunch this upcoming summer, the team will have to move players to afford its young star’s pay raises. Could the New York Rangers be in the market for Nazem Kadri?

Can I interest you in a third line center that averages around 45 points per season and is capable of shutting down the other team’s best players as well as doing so with a sandpaper personality? If that sounds appealing, the New York Rangers may be able to take advantage of the Toronto Maple Leafs’ cap crunch this upcoming summer and land an impact talent at a reasonable price.

Granted, this is the second straight postseason in which Nazem Kadri was suspended for a hit to the head against the Boston Bruins and he has the most suspensions since the implementation of the current player safety system. But, all of that said, when Kadri has his head on straight, he is amongst the elite third line centers in all of the NHL.

The Rangers as an organization are talking up a big game this summer, there is some big game out there to be had in free agency, the team will pick second in the entry draft and it has oodles of cap space. But, riding all of the team’s hopes on free agency is a risky proposition because it requires choices to be made from people outside of the organization.

That’s what makes the trade market slightly more manageable, if things get ridiculous, all Rangers general manager Jeff Gorton has to do is say “no thank you,” and hang up the phone.

It’s expensive to be good

Part of the idea when the salary cap was established following the post-2004 lockout-canceled season was to limit the ability of teams to just break open the checkbook and sustain their teams through free agency. At one point, the Detroit Red Wings featured Brett Hull, Brendan Shannahan, Ray Whitney and Chris Chelios, a group of dominant legends all on the same team.

With a salary cap, teams would need to prioritize certain types of talent over others and make tough choices. The cap inherently favors small market teams who may not have as much money to spend from its ownership. But, the big market teams like the Rangers and Maple Leafs that always spend to the cap have to make tough calls.

This summer, the Leafs will need to take care of forward Mitch Marner who is a restricted free agent. After the last 12 months in which Toronto signed John Tavares and gave Auston Matthews a long-term extension, it’d be poor form for the team to bridge deal the former London Knight. However, to properly give Marner an extension, the Leafs need to clear its books.

Whether it be trading Kadri, finding a taker for Patrick Marleau or Nikita Zaitsev, there needs to be roster movement.

This is what makes the salary cap era such a struggle, a team like Toronto has to pick and choose which part of its team to neglect because of an arbitrary number determined by the league. But, this does open up an opportunity for the Rangers to make a move.

Now or later?

Whether the Rangers would be in the market for Kadri likely comes down to a timeline evaluation. Even though both head coach David Quinn and Gorton have said that they don’t think about player development in terms of timelines, they’d probably both admit it’s in the back of their respective minds.

Depending on how free agency goes this summer, the Rangers could very well be expected to compete for a playoff spot in 2019-2020. If that’s the case, New York could be in the market for Kadri this summer. Adding a ready-made upper echelon third line center would bolster the Rangers’ competitiveness right away.

This would allow Quinn to shelter Filip Chytil or Lias Andersson and make the lineup as a whole better. In both of the 2017 first round pick’s second full season, the coach needs to work on getting them up to snuff for possible playoff competition.

The cost

There are rumors that the Leafs are ready to give up on Kadri for his repeated infractions according to Pierre LeBrun of the athletic. Throw in the added cap crunch that Toronto is facing and the recipe for a move in the summer is fairly obvious.

Based on players that Kadri compares favorably to like Ryan Kesler and Brayden Schenn, the going rate for an above-average defensive forward is typically an NHL talent and a first-round pick. The Rangers could stand to unload a draft pick and a surplus player like Neal Pionk or Jimmy Vesey that could help the Leafs right away and save Toronto money.

This is primarily based on speculation, Toronto could bridge deal Marner and attempt to get the band back together for one last go at the Stanley Cup next season if it was inclined.

If Kadri does reach the trade market and the Rangers are serious about competing for a playoff spot next season, it’s not out of reason to trade for him. As long as the price was right, adding a bonafide NHL center to the mix would accelerate the process.

Kadri makes $4.5 million per season until the 2021-2022 season. At that cap hit, the Rangers could afford to bring him into the fold and still have leeway to make more moves this summer. That’s the beauty of being a rebuilding team, the Rangers have the financial flexibility to make a number of moves.

Throw in Kadri’s sandpaper personality and straight ahead style which coach Quinn would love and this could be a perfect fit.