New York Rangers fans waited to see what the next step of Chris Drury's retool would be. That was supposed to be at the March 6 trade deadline, potentially by trading center Vincent Trocheck. Ultimately, Trocheck stayed put after no team was willing to meet Drury's asking price, with the only moves being Sam Carrick to the Buffalo Sabres and Brennan Othmann to the Calgary Flames.
With Trocheck staying put, Rangers fans are wondering what's next, and if Drury missed out on a chance to trade him away with his value seemingly at it's highest.
In the latest edition of his 32 Thoughts column, Sportsnet NHL insider Elliotte Friedman says the Rangers are banking on teams having plenty of interest in Trocheck due in part to the lackluster free agent class.
"With the cap going up and the free-agent class shrinking, teams believe term will become even more valuable for trade targets. That’s one of the reasons the Rangers didn’t move Vincent Trocheck," writes Friedman. "Maybe someone would’t pay the price this month, but how about this summer? That’s their bet."
Elliotte Friedman says Rangers are banking on increased trade interest for Vincent Trocheck
That is certainly the hope for Rangers fans as well. Trocheck's value was at an all-time high entering the March 6 deadline. Trocheck has value not only as a scorer, but also with face-off battles and on the penalty kill. He showed the latter two for Team USA, who won the gold medal for the first time since 1980. There's also the fact that Trocheck is on an affordable deal, where he earns $5.6 million per year through the 2028-29 season.
Trocheck does carry a no-trade list, which decreases to 10 teams this summer, but Drury has respected his wishes. Trocheck let it be known that he wanted to remain on the East Coast, thus eliminating West Coast teams as potential trade partners. The three teams linked to Trocheck were the Carolina Hurricanes, Detroit Red Wings, and Wild. While the list does drop by two teams as compared to the 12-team list this season, it will remain to be seen if other teams step up and if Trocheck would be willing to consider a trade to them.
The trade block should be active, especially since the once-lauded free agency class has been depleted to essentially scraps. The likes of Connor McDavid, Jack Eichel, Kirill Kaprizov, Kyle Connor, and Marin Necas all re-signed with their current teams on contract extensions. Thus, there aren't many top options available for teams. So, the trade block could be the way to go.
The Rangers are in the midst of a retool, as their roster does need a youth movement. Their prospect pool isn't necessarily the greatest at the moment, so they could stand to add some more talent from other teams. Players like Trocheck could help them out. All it takes is a bidding war that could force a team to be willing to surrender the necessary prospects and draft picks for Drury to agree to the deal.
We'll see if that comes to fruition. Drury took a gamble by holding onto Trocheck. But let's see if the bidding war will happen in the summer.