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Three destinations for a Barclay Goodrow trade

By Conor Power

NEWARK, NEW JERSEY - APRIL 27: Barclay Goodrow #21 of the New York Rangers skates against the New Jersey Devils in Game Five of the First Round of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Prudential Center on April 27, 2023 in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
NEWARK, NEW JERSEY - APRIL 27: Barclay Goodrow #21 of the New York Rangers skates against the New Jersey Devils in Game Five of the First Round of the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Prudential Center on April 27, 2023 in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) /
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TORONTO, CANADA – JANUARY 25: Barclay Goodrow #21 of the New York Rangers tries to squeeze between Morgan Rielly #44 and Justin Holl #3 of the Toronto Maple Leafs during an NHL game at Scotiabank Arena on January 25, 2023, in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Maple Leafs defeated the Rangers 3-2 in overtime. (Photo by Claus Andersen/Getty Images)
TORONTO, CANADA – JANUARY 25: Barclay Goodrow #21 of the New York Rangers tries to squeeze between Morgan Rielly #44 and Justin Holl #3 of the Toronto Maple Leafs during an NHL game at Scotiabank Arena on January 25, 2023, in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The Maple Leafs defeated the Rangers 3-2 in overtime. (Photo by Claus Andersen/Getty Images) /

Toronto Maple Leafs

One solution is to send Goodrow home to Ontario, and to the Toronto Maple Leafs. As the Maple Leafs will be looking to rebuild their bottom six with the salary cap coming to collect some of their depth pieces. With a new general manager, the sense is that the Leafs may decide to go a different route in terms of their roster building. With this organization seemingly loving guys from the local area, Goodrow could slot in nicely.

Goodrow was a major piece of the Tampa Bay Lightnings’ repeat as Stanley Cup Champions and after the Leafs got out of the first round for the first time in almost 20 years, Goodrow could be a piece to help guide a core that has struggled to compete in round two towards the Stanley Cup. They have room for his contract and they know that they can get the player to waive his modified no-trade if he won’t allow them to acquire him.

It works for the Rangers because it would move Goodrow out of the Metropolitan. They’d have to play the Leafs three times a year and could meet them in the playoffs early if one team was to falter and find themself in the wild-card spots as opposed to the divisional places these two hockey clubs have gotten so accustomed to. It’s unlikely though, and it would clear cap space for New York.

As for the return, I’d imagine it would just be a mid to late-round selection. Toronto like Torontonians, New York needs the cap space. It seems like a good fit in general. Toronto is not constrained in terms of its cap either and could do this without the Rangers having to pay or retain. This might be a little wishful thinking, but there is a case here for both teams to make it work.

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