New York Rangers: Throwing Skjeid

The New York Rangers are making progress in many ways while also spinning their wheels in others. The team faces some very tough decisions as the calendar changes over to 2020, but this should not be one of them.

So here we are, beginning a new year and nearly half way through the 2019-20 season.  You have to admit that despite the ups and downs that the Rangers have experienced this year, they have been very entertaining to watch on most nights.  The game in Toronto on Saturday night was more entertaining than any movie released in 2019.  It was 3 hours of riveting hockey and just a pure joy to watch.

Would the game have been as much fun if the Maple Leafs had scored in overtime?  Yes, it would have been, only there would have been a sting from a very tough loss that would linger until the puck drops on the next game in Edmonton.  But isn’t that what we signed on for this year?

That mindset however is beginning to change.  Fans are starting to taste it.  The hunger for more wins is becoming more and more prevalent. So as the season starts to get really interesting, how should the Rangers position themselves to be in the playoff hunt, not only this year, but for years to come?

By trading Brady Skjei and his $5.25 million cap hit.

Why Skjei?

With the emergence of Adam Fox, and the maturation of Anthony DeAngelo the Rangers no longer need Skjei as a puck moving offense minded D-man. He has essentially become a non-entity in that role.  Once in a while you still see the flashes of brilliance that garnered him the six-year deal with the team after the 2018 season but he is NOT NEEDED in that role with this team any longer.

With Libor Hajek now a proven NHL defenseman, Yegor Rykov knocking on the door down in Hartford and K’Andre Miller a very real possibility for this team next year, why in the world would the Rangers want to keep Skjei and his $5.25 million cap hit around?

If they keep Skjei, next year they would eat over $15 million in cap space combined on Skjei, Marc Staal ($5.7) and Brendan Smith ($4.35).  Okay, Smith isn’t playing D on a full-time basis but you get the point.  Plus no NHL team is taking on Staal or Smith with those contract numbers.  They are part of the equation next year one way or the other.

Skjei on the other hand has value, and his contract would look like a pretty good deal should he wind up on a team that can get the most out of him. A team that is desperate for some help on the back-end should be very interested in a player like Skjei.