Trade rumors are flying left and right. The New York Rangers themselves looked set to undergo cosmetic surgery on the back end before suddenly stringing together several wins that have put the Blueshirts back in the hunt for the playoffs. Winning games is a great way to cover up a team's issues, and the Rangers have found that out once more, leaving them in a weird position for this deadline. Do they buy or sell?
While you can argue this either way, the Rangers will look at both options. If they are buying, they have a lot more cap space than they did at the start of the year because of the trade of Jacob Trouba. It's left the Rangers with a fraction under $8 million available to them and a few needs across the roster. With most of the issues coming from the blue line, one forward the Rangers may consider is the Buffalo Sabres' Dylan Cozens.
Cozens has been appearing in trade rumors for a while now, but he is underperforming his current contract. Cozens makes $7.1 million per year for the next five seasons after this one as the 2019 7th overall pick got his payday after recording 31 goals and 37 assists for 68 points in 81 games during his third season in the league. That's worth every penny of a $7.1 million cap hit, but that's not the player he is every year.
Last season, Cozens recorded 18 goals and 29 assists for 47 points in 79 games, showing a decline in the player's production. This year, Cozens has played in 43 games, recording just nine goals and twelve assists for 21 points. He's on pace for 40 points. Buffalo is fielding calls on the young forward if Elliotte Friedman and Frank Seravalli are to be believed, but the underperforming young forward has a hefty price tag.
Buffalo wants something similar for the forwards' services, but teams understand the Sabres are negotiating from a position of weakness. Buffalo hasn't made the postseason in 14 years, and they're starting to suffer as an organization. Fans are tuning out, attendance is dropping, and the Sabres need something to stay afloat. Getting out from under a contract like this is something Sabres general manager Kevyn Adams will be forced to do at some point.
Where the question lies is what the return is. New York is a good landing spot because they could take the entire contract without making the Sabres retain or take salary back, and replacing 40-point producers isn't impossible. What might be difficult is trying to give the Sabres someone of Cozens' age. Kaapo Kakko could have been a good fit here, but he's moved to Seattle. Arthur Kaliyev was just claimed on waivers and doesn't have the value, while Othmann, Lafreniere, and Perreault are off the table.
Truthfully, making this deal work from an asset standpoint is difficult. The Sabres need almost everything and have holes similar to those of the Rangers. Defensive inefficiencies plague both teams, and the Rangers don't have the defensive depth to throw away at Buffalo. However, the Sabres don't have to gift Cozens away, leading to a potential stand off if Chris Drury is interested in the Whitehorse, Yukon native.