New York Rangers
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June 20, 2018
By Ralph Costanza

Fyi… Below New York Rangers Headlines use words from my favorite Bob Dylan song “It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue”.

New York Rangers Dominated  Trade Market – “Take what you need, you think will last…”

New York Rangers

The New York Rangers have quietly dominated the trade market this year.  They have set themselves up beautifully for a very deep and extremely talented draft class.  The future is bright thanks to some crafty, forward looking moves by their GM Jeff Gorton. The Rangers have accumulated 7 draft picks in the first 3 rounds of this draft (3 picks in the 1st round).  They have also been able to do that while clearing up about $28 million in cap space.  All of this while hiring new head coach David Quinn out of Boston University.

Coach Quinn has a successful resume with a knack for developing young talent. The Rangers are sending a message. They want to be young.  They want to build the future now. And they want to it to last. 

New York Rangers “Strike another match, go start anew…”

The New York Rangers believe they already have some of the building blocks in place for a future Stanley Cup run, drafting a pair of young 1st round centers in last year’s draft in 19-year old Lias Anderson and 18- year old Filip Chytil to complement their already very deep corps of young, talented centers. This is also why many around the league believe the Rangers are not yet done trading, as they hold a bevy of draft picks including the 26th and 28th overall picks, chips that are certainly valuable on their own, but more so if you can couple one, if not both picks, with a top-6 center, like a Kevin Hayes, to move up the draft board.

The Rangers have already confirmed that are receiving calls from teams around the league about the availability of Hayes, one of the Rangers seven restricted free agents.  But more importantly than just fielding calls, the Rangers have unequivocally solidified their appeal to be a major trade partner leading up to the draft. And if Gorton plays his hand correctly, that can work to their advantage.  Bigly. And if all goes well, whether they indeed decide to wrap up some of these picks in a trade or not, the Rangers are absolutely in the running for a big free agent signing this summer. 

“The carpet too, is moving under you…”

The Rangers need to be careful here as being in such a position is a privilege as much as it could be a curse.  There are a lot of moving parts heading into Friday night, and it would behoove GM Thorton to keep a close eye on who he has a realistic shot at in free agency, which starts on July 1st.  

With John Tavares headlining the FA class of 2018, and John Carlson (who I would really love to see the Rangers land), there is also 29- year old left winger James van Reimsdyck, all of whom would be commodities for a team looking to add some seasoned, elite-talented vets to help along the younger generation. But if Gorton isn’t vigilant in his pursuit to build what he has been anticipating, his vision for the future, he could wind up wasting a once in a lifetime opportunity.  If the Rangers are going to make a trade before or during Friday night’s draft, they need to do this with the mind-set that they can make improvements in several areas, including defense and a much needed partner for Kevin Shattenkirk. 

 “…now, Baby Blue”

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