The New York Rangers, and their fans, likely have some mixed feelings after watching K'Andre Miller lift the Stanley Cup on Sunday with Carolina, and the latest trade rumor involving the Blueshirts certainly adds an interesting wrinkle to the situation.
Last offseason the Rangers decided to go in a different direction on defense, and step one of the process was signing and trading Miller. The next step, with their available cap space, was signing Vladislav Gavrikov away from the Los Angeles Kings. Gavrikov was sensational during his first season on Broadway, but the latest rumor suggests that a reunion in Los Angeles could be in the cards this summer.
Los Angeles Kings insider brings up possibility of Gavrikov reunion
John Hoven has been covering the Los Angeles Kings for a long time, and he recently made an apperance on NHL Network Radio with Dennis Bernstein (PHWA chapter chair of the Kings), and Dave Pagnotta. During the appearance, in which Hoven was answering questions about the direction the team could go after hiring Peter Laviolette, he made a comment about Gavrikov.
Hoven said, "I am going to throw a name at you. Don't be surprised if you see Gavrikov in Los Angeles this summer."
For starters, getting rid of a young (albeit flawed) defenseman in Miller to sign Gavrikov and then turn around to move him after a year would be a very big whiff for the Rangers. This is not to say the Rangers were wrong to go in a different direction, but it speaks to them moving Miller for a fit that didn't last as long as it should have. If the biggest selling point was taking a risk on Miller leaving because of what Gavrikov would do to the roster, it calls into question the long-term vision if there's already whispers about a potential return to Los Angeles.
Gavrikov was very effective for the Rangers, and a great partner for Adam Fox. The Rangers have been steadfast in their strategy of this being a retool and not a rebuild, so there's no reason to move off of Gavrikov yet. Fox was sensational when he got on the ice for the Blueshirts, and a pairing of Gavrikov and Fox checks off important boxes for being a serious Cup contender.
There may come a time in which moving on from Gavrikov makes sense, but that time isn't now when the Rangers are saying publicly that they want to win hockey games and get back to the playoffs. If the plan has changed, that would mean the Rangers talk of a retool is cheap.
The Rangers already lost a trade to Los Angeles, they can't afford to lose another one
If Gavrikov ends up in Los Angeles, it is because that's the only place he wants to be. A full no movement clause was added to the beginning of his contract, and that means he holds the cards just like Artemi Panarin did when the Rangers moved him at the deadline.
It is possible that Panarin was one of the reasons that Gavrikov agreed to join the Rangers, and with him now in Los Angeles, he'd be open to re-joining the team. If that's truly the case, it is hard to see a world in which the Rangers do well enough in a trade to justify moving him. Panarin's NMC prevented the Rangers from doing better than they should have, and there is no good reason to walk into a similar situation now.
While the Rangers would gain quite a deal of cap space moving off of Gavrikov's contract, there aren't players better than him in free agency that are worth spending money on.
Regardless of outcome, Rangers need direction
The Rangers are fresh off two of their most disappointing seasons in recent history, and it comes on the heels of the Knicks having two of the most successful seasons in their recent history. There are only a few things about the Rangers' roster that fans should be excited about, one of which is Gavrikov. If he is removed from the roster, that makes the team's defensive outlook that much scarier, and it would be a signal that they are rebuilding more than they are retooling. If that ends up being the case... fine.
Above all else, the Rangers need to pick a firm direction, and fully embrace it. If they are rebuilding, move off any player that isn't tied down and has value that can net assets that can be part of the solution. If they are serious about retooling, it makes sense to try and make some hockey trades and/or sign free agents who can improve around the margins until the bigger difference makers are available.
That said, the latest rumor certainly calls into question Chris Drury's larger post Letter 2.0 vision, and it will be interesting to see if there's more to this story. If the Rangers end up being linked to another defender, that would be more fuel on the fire that they are thinking about a team that doesn't include Gavrikov.
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