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Did The Rangers Move On From Nils Lundkvist Too Quickly?

By Lucas Standel|
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - DECEMBER 08: Nils Lundkvist #27 of the New York Rangers celebrates his first NHL goal at 18:15 of the first period against the Colorado Avalanche at Madison Square Garden on December 08, 2021 in New York City. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - DECEMBER 08: Nils Lundkvist #27 of the New York Rangers celebrates his first NHL goal at 18:15 of the first period against the Colorado Avalanche at Madison Square Garden on December 08, 2021 in New York City. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)

With the recent news of Zac Jones being sent back to the Hartford Wolfpack, a thought came into my mind. Did the Rangers really have to trade Nils Lundkvist when they did? Sure, they got a first-round pick for a player who wanted a trade, but it does not change the fact that right now, the Rangers could use a player like Nils Lundkvist. With the defense group being thin in regards to depth, having a player like Lundkvist around would help solve some of the problems the team is having.

The reasons why the Swedish defenseman wanted out of New York were because he did not see a spot for himself on the right side of the defense and he also wanted to get power-play time. Those two reasons are fair. The Rangers have a right side of Adam Fox, Jacob Trouba, and Branden Schneider and Fox is the top power-play quarterback and no one was taking that spot from him.

NEW YORK, NEW YORK – DECEMBER 08: Nils Lundkvist #27 of the New York Rangers celebrates his first NHL goal at 18:15 of the first period against the Colorado Avalanche at Madison Square Garden on December 08, 2021, in New York City. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – DECEMBER 08: Nils Lundkvist #27 of the New York Rangers celebrates his first NHL goal at 18:15 of the first period against the Colorado Avalanche at Madison Square Garden on December 08, 2021, in New York City. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)

The Rangers decided to go with Zac Jones and Libor Hajek as their depth defensive options. However, could they have at least tried playing Lundkvist on the left side with Schneider? Many players are not comfortable playing on their opposite side, but this pairing could have worked. You have Schneider as the more defensive, stay-at-home guy and then Lundkvist could jump up into the offense when he has the chance.

This pairing could have worked and might have been better than what we have seen so far this season.

In regards to power-play time, they could have used Lundkvist on the second unit instead of Trouba. We know Trouba has been dealing with a lingering injury, so taking him off od the power-play, which rarely gets any time, and replacing him with Lundkvist would have been a better option. Sure, Lundkvist would not have gotten top power-play minutes, but he still would have been given the chance to quarterback a talented power-play group that consists of Alexis Lafreniere, Kaapo Kakko, and Filip Chytil.

NEW YORK, NEW YORK – OCTOBER 29: Nils Lundkvist #27 of the New York Rangers shoots the puck during the second period against the Columbus Blue Jackets at Madison Square Garden on October 29, 2021, in New York City. (Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – OCTOBER 29: Nils Lundkvist #27 of the New York Rangers shoots the puck during the second period against the Columbus Blue Jackets at Madison Square Garden on October 29, 2021, in New York City. (Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images)

While these options could have been nice ones for the Rangers to have, we will never know how this could have worked out as Lundkvist is now getting his chance to shine with the Dallas Stars. While we all wish the best for Lundkvist and hope he has a great NHL career, there will still be many questions as to if he could have been a fit for the New York Rangers as they are currently constructed.

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