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Trade Candidate: Chris Kreider

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With the trade deadline quickly approaching, we continue to profile players in the weeks ahead that have a good chance to be dealt by February 24th.

The New York Rangers find themselves in quite the dilemma as one of their top players for the last several years, Chris Kreider, finds himself ready to hit unrestricted free agency on July 1, and the team has to decide what to do with him. As of now, most indications are that the Rangers and Kreider haven’t gotten very far in extension talks and the general belief is that New York intends to trade him at the trade deadline.

With the team in a rebuilding phase, it makes sense to move Kreider, but the team has made some progress in the last year. The team is just 11 points out of a playoff spot and a strong second-half could allow them to catapult them into the playoffs. However, the team is hardly ready to compete for a Stanley Cup and at age 28, signing Kreider to a seven or eight-year deal may also not be the greatest idea either. Despite the sentimental side of things, the team might be better off getting what they can.

Contract

Kreider is in the final year of a four-year, $18.5MM  contract that he signed back in 2016. He has a an AAV of $4.625MM and will hit unrestricted free agency in July. He does have a modified no-trade clause in which he has an 11-team no-trade list.

2019-20

Kreider has been a consistent goal scorer in New York for the past seven years and the 28-year-old has been no different this season. After a 28-goal campaign in 2018-19, Kreider is well on his way of duplicating that number once again. He currently has 17 goals and 32 points and should be in line for similar numbers from last year, if not better. However, he’s been even better over the past 20 games as Kreider has 11 goals in that span, along with 19 points, making his stock continue to rise as he has been playing close to a point-per-game player. He has been playing so well that many wonder if the Rangers would be losing too key of a player.

Season Stats

48 GP, 17 goals, 15 assists, 32 points, +1 rating, 58 PIMS, 117 shots, 17:43 ATOI, 47.4 CF%

Potential Suitors

Many teams will be looking to acquire a speedy power forward, who can score. The earliest suitor for Kreider goes back a ways as there were rumors that the Colorado Avalanche might be interested to bring Kreider in for a Stanley Cup run. However, that interest has supposedly slipped. The Montreal Canadiens have also expressed interest, but there are rumors that Kreider put all Canadian teams on his no-trade list.

In the East, the Rangers have a history making moves with the Boston Bruins at the trade deadline and this year is likely no different. Despite a dominant first line, the Bruins are still struggling to get quality offense from their second line and could use a veteran goal scorer who could step in and help anchor a group of forwards, including Jake Debrusk and Charlie Coyle. The team does have almost all of its picks, including its first-round picks in the next three drafts, so the have some key assets in which to acquire Kreider. The Bruins also have a bunch of young forwards that are NHL ready and could be another trade chip to use, including Anders Bjork, Danton Heinen as well as several forwards currently playing in Providence of the AHL.

Out West, there could be several teams interested in Kreider, but its rumored that the Dallas Stars might be looking for some goal scoring. The team is currently ranked 27th in goals scored and also acquired Mats Zuccarello from the Rangers last season. Despite being tight against the cap, Dallas does have the luxury of placing Martin Hanzal on LTIR, which could open up the needed space to bring in Kreider. The biggest concern, however, is that the team might be hesitant to move its first-round pick after having already traded their second-round (to Vegas for Marc Methot) and a third-rounder (to the Rangers for Zuccarello), which could leave without any picks until the fourth round at the draft. Even among prospects, Dallas might hesitate to trade their top prospects, which could make a match difficult, but not impossible.

Likelihood Of A Trade

With a key game-winning goal against the rival New York Islanders nine days ago, many have felt that moving Kreider would be a mistake as he is a major part to the team. However, the Rangers expect to have some cap issues in the coming seasons as the team has to sign several key players in the next couple of years to long-term deals, including Anthony DeAngelo, Ryan Strome, Brendan Lemieux, Alexandar Georgiev for next year, while others like Kaapo Kakko and Filip Chytil are both likely to expect big deals down the road. Throw in the $6.08MM cap hit that the team will get from Kevin Shattenkirk’s buyout next year, and there doesn’t look to be much money left available for Kreider, who is likely looking for a big payday.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Ryan Strome Hoping To Remain In New York

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The Rangers are facing a pending salary cap crunch next summer highlighted by a sizable new deal on the way for defenseman Anthony DeAngelo as well as the buyout cost on Kevin Shattenkirk going up by $4.6MM.  As a result, some have suggested that forward Ryan Strome may ultimately be a casualty.  However, he’s in the midst of a resurgent season himself and told Steve Serby of the New York Post that he’d like to stick around:

After being cast aside by Edmonton last season, the 26-year-old sits second on the Rangers in scoring this season with 43 points already, just seven shy of his career high.  He’s slated to be a restricted free agent this summer with arbitration rights and will have a strong case for a big raise on his current $3.2MM salary which also represents his required qualifying offer in June.  It may be tricky for GM Jeff Gorton to accommodate it though.

2020 NHL All-Star Skills Participants Announced

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Before Saturday’s All-Star Game three-on-three tournament, the NHL’s best will take the ice on Friday night in the annual All-Star Skills event. There has been considerable hype around this year’s competition, given both the new “Shooting Stars” event, in which players will fire the puck at targets on the ice from platforms in the stands, and the participation of stars from the women’s game, including their own three-on-three scrimmage. Now, the league has announced who specifically will be taking part in each event, both new and classic. Below is the lineup for each event:

Fastest Skater

Jack Eichel, Buffalo Sabres
Nathan MacKinnon, Colorado Avalanche
Connor McDavid, Edmonton Oilers
Mathew Barzal, New York Islanders
Chris Kreider, New York Rangers
Anthony Duclair, Ottawa Senators
Travis Konecny, Philadelphia Flyers
Quinn Hughes, Vancouver Canucks

Save Streak

David Rittich, Calgary Flames
Tristan Jarry, Pittsburgh Penguins
Jordan Binnington, St. Louis Blues
Andrei Vasilevskiy, Tampa Bay Lightning
Frederik Andersen, Toronto Maple Leafs
Jacob Markstrom, Vancouver Canucks
Braden Holtby, Washington Capitals
Connor Hellebuyck, Winnipeg Jets

Accuracy Shooting

Jaccob Slavin, Carolina Hurricanes
Tyler Bertuzzi, Detroit Red Wings
Leon Draisaitl, Edmonton Oilers
Jonathan Huberdeau, Florida Panthers
Nico Hischier, New Jersey Devils
Tomas Hertl, San Jose Sharks
Alex Pietrangelo, St. Louis Blues
Mark Scheifele, Winnipeg Jets

Hardest Shot

Mark Giordano, Calgary Flames
Seth Jones, Columbus Blue Jackets
Shea Weber, Montreal Canadiens
Victor Hedman, Tampa Bay Lightning
Elias Pettersson, Vancouver Canucks
John Carlson, Washington Capitals

Shooting Stars

David Pastrnak, Boston Bruins
Matthew Tkachuk, Calgary Flames
Patrick Kane, Chicago Blackhawks
Tyler Seguin, Dallas Stars
Brady Tkachuk, Ottawa Senators
David Perron, St. Louis Blues
Ryan O’Reilly, St. Louis Blues
Mitch Marner, Toronto Maple Leafs
American Women’s Elite All-Star (TBD)
Canadian Women’s Elite All-Star (TBD)

Women’s Three-On-Three

Team Canada: Meghan Agosta, Mélodie Daoust, Ann-Renée Desbiens, Renata Fast, Laura Fortino, Rebecca Johnston, Sarah Nurse, Marie-Philip Poulin, Natalie Spooner, Blayre Turnbull

Team USA: Kacey Bellamy, Alex Carpenter, Kendall Coyne Schofield, Brianna Decker, Amanda Kessel, Hilary Knight, Jocelyn Lamoureux-Davidson, Annie Pankowski, Alex Rigsby Cavallini, Lee Stecklein

All the action kicks off at 7:00pm local time in St. Louis, with coverage from NBCSN in the U.S and CBC, SN, and TVAS in Canada.

Minor Transactions: 01/22/20

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With just two games remaining on the schedule before the entire league breaks for the All-Star Game festivities, there will be many minor moves today seeing players head down to the AHL. Anyone that isn’t tied down by waiver eligibility will be heading down to get some extra work during the break and save their NHL club a few cap dollars. As always, we’ll keep track of those moves right here.

  • The New York Rangers have sent down Igor Shesterkin and Phillip Di Giuseppe, though the former is still not expected to take part in the AHL All-Star event. Shesterkin was selected for the minor league game after going 15-4-3 with a .932 in his first taste of North American professional hockey, but was replaced earlier this week as he continued to play with the Rangers.
  • Nicolas Hague and Nicolas Roy have both been sent back to the AHL by the Vegas Golden Knights, a trip both of them got used to earlier in the season. While Roy has continued to bounce up and down between the two leagues, Hague has been in the NHL since the middle of November and playing regularly for the Golden Knights. The 21-year old defenseman has 11 points in 38 games.
  • The Chicago Blackhawks have returned Brandon Hagel and Dennis Gilbert to the AHL. Hagel still hasn’t suited up for an NHL game, but he’s obviously getting closer to that dream after several call-ups in recent days.
  • Andrew Agozzino, Joseph Blandisi, Sam Lafferty and Kevin Czuczman have all been assigned to the AHL by the Pittsburgh Penguins, allowing the NHL club to bank a little extra cap space as they continue to push for the playoffs. The Penguins have quite a bit of flexibility when it comes to deadline additions thanks to some savvy saving and the potential long-term injured reserve cap room created by Jake Guentzel’s injury.
  • The Penguins cross-state rival have also sent several players to the minors, as Alex Lyon, German Rubtsov and Connor Bunnaman are all leaving the Philadelphia Flyers for now. The Flyers don’t play again until January 31st, giving them a chance to sort out their roster in a week’s time.
  • Sebastian Aho, no not that Sebastian Aho, has been sent to the minor leagues by the New York Islanders. The young defenseman has been brought up a few times as injury insurance since Adam Pelech went down earlier this month, but still hasn’t found his way into an NHL game this season.
  • The Detroit Red Wings are one of the few teams in action today, and have recalled Dennis Cholowski ahead of their game against the Minnesota Wild. Cholowski has split his time between the NHL and AHL this season, suiting up 29 times for the Red Wings.
  • Karson Kuhlman, Jeremy Lauzon and Dan Vladar have all been returned to the AHL by the Boston Bruins. Lauzon, 22, scored the second NHL goal of his career last night for Boston, even while playing his off-side.
  • The Florida Panthers have returned Riley Stillman and Sam Montembeault to the minor leagues over the break. Stillman has played in 16 games with the Panthers this season, but is still looking for his first career NHL goal.

Lias Andersson Practicing With Swedish Club

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There hasn’t been much communication between the New York Rangers and prospect Lias Andersson since he left the organization and was subsequently suspended, but that has started to change according to Larry Brooks of the New York Post. Brooks reports that the young forward has been communicating directly with team president John Davidson for the last ten days. That report comes after one earlier today that indicated Andersson has started skating with a low level team in Sweden as he works toward whatever future his playing career holds.

Andersson played 17 games for the Rangers and 13 games for the Hartford Wolf Pack of the AHL this season but hasn’t yet lived up to the top billing he received as the seventh-overall selection in 2017. The 21-year old center made an incredible impression in his first training camp with the team after being drafted, but has since been in a sort of limbo, switching leagues and roles often.

Through 66 games at the NHL level Andersson has scored just nine points, meaning any trade out of the Rangers organization would be giving up an asset at its lowest value. Brooks notes that the Rangers have given their approval to get him skating again, though he does not suggest what the next step would be at this point.

Andersson’s entry-level contract extends through the 2020-21 season, after which he would become a restricted free agent.

Bruins Eyeing Chris Kreider As Their Top Deadline Target

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For the past several seasons, the Bruins have headed into the trade deadline with an eye on upgrading their situation on the wing and it appears this year will be no exception.  With that in mind, NBC Sports Boston’s Joe Haggerty mentions that Rangers winger Chris Kreider appears to be their top target between now and next month’s deadline.

While the interest certainly makes sense on the surface – a contending team looking at an impact power forward – the fit could be a bit tricky.  Boston’s weakness up front is on the right wing while Kreider is a natural left winger where the team has some depth at that position in Brad Marchand, Jake DeBrusk, Anders Bjork, and Danton Heinen.  The latter two have shifted to the right side in the past and acquiring someone like Kreider could certainly have one of them making that switch again.

The Bruins also find themselves with limited cap space.  They’re currently using LTIR on defenseman Kevan Miller but he has resumed skating and is expected back this season so they’ll already need to ensure that they’re in cap compliance when he returns.  Per CapFriendly, the team is projected to have $712 in cap room; even with a player getting sent down when Miller comes back, that’s far from enough space to add Kreider and his $4.625MM AAV, even if they were to retain the maximum 50% in any deal.

GM Don Sweeney will also have to be mindful of the potential for a bonus overage.  Zdeno Chara has already reached $1.25MM of his bonuses while he’ll earn another $250K if the team makes the playoffs which is a safe assumption at this point.  Making a move for Kreider (or a similarly-priced player) will basically guarantee an overage which will carry over onto the 2020-21 cap.

The Rangers aren’t entirely out of the playoff picture themselves and it’s quite possible that if they go on a run themselves, they could opt to hold onto Kreider.  Having said that, it doesn’t appear as if they’ve had any discussions about an extension as of yet so a trade at this time still seems like the likelier scenario.  Of course, there will be plenty of other teams vying for his services as he may wind up being the top rental player that’s moved over the next month.

It was only two seasons ago that the Bruins and Rangers made a rental deal of significance just before the trade deadline, one that saw Rick Nash go to Boston for a collection of picks, prospects, and players to help make the finances work.  They may have to make a similarly-structured deal in order for Boston to land their top target this time around.

Latest On Alexandar Georgiev

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All season long, fans and media members have speculated that the New York Rangers and Toronto Maple Leafs could be potential trade partners when it came to the backup goaltending position. The Maple Leafs have struggled with it all year, while the Rangers have young Alexandar Georgiev seemingly being pushed out by top prospect Igor Shesterkin. Last night, Darren Dreger of TSN tweeted that the Maple Leafs were one of the teams that inquired about Georgiev and this morning James Mirtle of The Athletic takes it even further.

Mirtle writes (subscription required) that the Maple Leafs have made “multiple” inquiries into the availability of Georgiev, but that the Rangers have been asking for a young NHL player in return.

Interestingly, after the Rangers’ win last night against the New York Islanders, Dreger threw some cold water on the whirlwind rumors by tweeting that the team may be changing their mind about selling off pieces. The Rangers are after all just six points out of a playoff spot and now hold a positive goal differential.

But Georgiev’s situation doesn’t have a ton to do with the immediate success of the team. It is obvious that Shesterkin is the heir apparent at this point to Henrik Lundqvist’s crown, meaning there are too many mouths to feed for next season. Add in the fact that Georgiev is a restricted free agent at season’s end and will require a reasonable raise, and it makes sense why the team would be looking to leverage his value right now.

No Extension Talks Yet Between Rangers And Chris Kreider

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Rangers winger Chris Kreider is believed to be one of the top rental players in play between now and next month’s trade deadline.  However, there’s always the possibility that New York turns around and tries to sign him to an extension.  While it would seem like this is the time to get those discussions going, Larry Brooks of the New York Post reports that there have yet to be any substantive talks with Kreider’s representatives about a new deal.

While the 28-year-old isn’t a top scorer, he’s on pace for his third season of more than 50 points over the last four years.  (The season he didn’t get there was in 2017-18 where he missed 24 games due to injury but produced at a 52-point pace.)  That type of consistency is always going to be attractive to teams, as is his physicality which becomes even more important in the postseason.  With that in mind, virtually every contender with cap room to work with should have interest in acquiring him.  TSN’s Darren Dreger reported in the latest Insider Trading (video link) that GM Jeff Gorton is willing to retain up to the maximum 50% of Kreider’s cap hit if they do wind up going that route which opens up plenty of options.

However, with New York coming out of their rebuilding cycle, he’s also the type of player that makes sense to keep around.  Finding the money to do so will be tricky though.

Kreider is certain to land a sizable raise on his current $4.625MM AAV.  On the surface, a jump of $2MM or so shouldn’t be that difficult to make room for but there other factors at play.  The buyout cap charge of Kevin Shattenkirk jumps from $1.483MM this season to $6.083MM in 2020-21, adding $4.6MM to next year’s cap already.  Defenseman Anthony DeAngelo is in line for a substantial raise as a restricted free agent this summer with arbitration eligibility while forward Ryan Strome and Alexandar Georgiev are in need of new deals as well.  With nearly $66MM in payroll commitments for next season already, that doesn’t leave a whole lot left to work with to re-sign everyone and round out the roster.

It’s reasonable to think that this could be playing a factor in the lack of discussions.  There isn’t much point in getting into serious talks until they know for certain that they can actually afford to re-sign Kreider.  Presumably, Gorton will want to get a sense of what it will cost for an extension – if for no other reason to answer the inquiry from other general managers as to what the asking price is – which will likely stall any trade discussions for a while yet.  Things can change quite quickly as the deadline approaches but as things stand, it certainly seems like Kreider will be in another uniform no more than six weeks from now.

Minor Transactions: 01/14/20

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11 games are on tap for tonight in a busy evening for the NHL, including the Dallas Stars and Colorado Avalanche clashing in an important Central Division match. The two teams are battling for home ice advantage in what would be a first round playoff series, with the Stars currently one point ahead of the Avalanche in the standings. The two teams have arrived there in very different ways, with Dallas allowing the fewest goals against in the league while Colorado ranks among the highest-scoring. As they and the rest of the NHL prepares for tonight, we’ll keep track of all the minor moves.

  • The Toronto Maple Leafs have recalled Timothy Liljegren after losing Morgan Rielly to a broken foot. The young defenseman will likely not play tonight, but now sits as the team’s seventh option as they insert Rasmus Sandin back into the lineup.
  • The Maple Leafs have also sent Mason Marchment back to the minors, an expected move after recently activating Andreas Johnsson from injured reserve. The team is still waiting on the return of Trevor Moore, while Ilya Mikheyev is not expected to play again this season.
  • Joseph Blandisi has been assigned to the AHL a few days after clearing waivers for the third time. The 25-year old forward has split his season between the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton and Pittsburgh Penguins, scoring five points at the NHL level.
  • The New York Rangers have sent Libor Hajek to the minor leagues, likely to get in some more game action before returning to the lineup. The 21-year old defenseman returned for the Rangers on Saturday night in St. Louis, but played just 15 minutes and was relatively ineffective. In 28 games this season Hajek has five points.

Eastern Notes: Trouba, Panik, Palmieri, Hughes, Johnsson

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The Department of Player Safety announced that New York Rangers defenseman Jacob Trouba has been fined $5,000, the maximum allowable under the CBA, for slashing St. Louis Blues defenseman Vince Dunn Saturday. The incident happened during the third period when Dunn circled around the Rangers’ net with Trouba following who proceeded to slash at Dunn. That started a shoving match, which eventually led to a fight.

Trouba received a five-minute penalty for slashing and a 10-game misconduct, while Dunn received a two-minute penalty for roughing. Trouba has been in trouble before as he received a two-game suspension back in 2017 after a hit to the head of Mark Stone.

  • No lost time on the ice for Washington Capitals forward Richard Panik. The forward was back at practice Sunday with a full face shield after being cut in the lower lip by the stick of New Jersey Devils forward Miles Wood, according to NHL.com’s Tom Gulitti. In fact, Panik said that his lower lip was separated from his gums and required 20 stitches. Fortunately, his teeth are fine.
  • The New Jersey Devils have lost one forward and gained another. NHL.com’s Amanda Stein reports that forward Kyle Palmieri is out Sunday for their game against Tampa Bay. The forward suffered a lower-body injury during Saturday’s game against Washington. He did block a shot off his foot and was reportedly hurting on the bench, but didn’t leave the game. No indication on how serious the injury is, however. The 28-year-old has 16 goals this season. However, the team announced it is expecting to get center Jack Hughes back in the lineup. The 18-year-old has missed five games with an upper-body injury.
  • Toronto Maple Leafs head coach said that the team will be activating forward Andreas Johnsson off of injured reserve and he is expected to take warm-ups before today’s game against Florida and will be a game-time decision, according to TSN’s Mark Masters. The has been out since Dec. 4 with a leg injury and should be able to provide the Maple Leafs with some offensive depth as he has six goals and 16 points through 30 games. The Maple Leafs added that the team has placed defenseman Jake Muzzin on IR to make room for Johnsson. Muzzin has been out with a broken foot since Dec. 27.

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