New York Rangers acquire Chad Ruhwedel from the Pittsburgh Penguins for a 4thround pick

As the New York Rangers try to keep up with the arms race in the Eastern Conference, the team will acquire defenseman Chad Ruhwedel from the Pittsburgh Penguins in exchange for a 2027 4th round draft pick. This will give the Rangers another depth defenseman option to allow the roster to continue to protect the crease in the garden during the upcoming playoff run. We know the Rangers are one of the best teams in the NHL, so this makes sense.

A San Diego native, Ruhwedel was undrafted before signing and making his NHL debut with the Buffalo Sabres. The Pittsburgh Penguins picked him up, and the 33-year-old was one of the staples off the Penguins defense. It's been a difficult season for the Penguins, so they are selling off the pieces that they can, and Ruhwedel is a depth addition for the blueline of the blueshirts. Savvy depth move but is it enough to move the needle for the Rangers?

As we get closer to the deadline at 3 p.m. Eastern today, we will see if the Rangers are able to address the remainder of the issues on the roster. But Ruhwedel is one of the depth pieces that was on the market that will help the Rangers feel secure of their blueline in the event of an injury to someone like Ryan Lindgren in the playoffs. This is a good move that allows the team to be a little deeper.

Ruhwedel makes $800,000 until the end of the year. What do you think about the trade? Do you like the depth addition Chris Drury and the Rangers rosters made or would you prefer to see them make a major splash for a forward before the deadline? There will be a lot of activity around the league between now and the time the freeze comes into affect.