A Rangers trade of Alexandar Georgiev made easier thanks to Keith Kinkaid and need for cap space
Alexandar Georgiev is a quality goaltender who has yet to realize his full potential. There’s rumblings that he is looking for an opportunity to be a starter elsewhere, but that was shot down by his agent.
Mike Liut who represents the 25 year-old told USA Today’s Vince Mercogliano that simply wasn’t true.
However; Frank Seravalli who initially reported the story is pretty adamant that Alexandar Georgiev is interested in a change of scenery and that the Rangers are looking to move him.
Trading Alexandar Georgiev
Georgiev’s cap hit coming into this season is $2.425M and he will be an RFA with arbitration rights in 2022. This makes him a desirable acquisition because the team that trades for him has some control until he’s 27.
This past season, Georgiev posted a 8-7-2 record with a solid GAA of 2.71 and SV% of .905. For his young career, he’s registered a 43-38-9 record with 6 shutouts, a 2.95 GAA, and .912 SV% in 96 games played. Solid stats which are more notable since he posted them in the middle of a Rangers rebuild.
Even more important is that the kid is battle tested and a proven commodity.
So why trade Georgiev? Chris Drury is going to need cap space and you can expect Georgiev will want a raise next summer. The Rangers just gave Igor Shesterkin a new 4 year-deal worth $5.66M a year against the cap. That means going into this season the Rangers are allocating a little over $8 million to goaltending. That’s not where the Blueshirts want to be. Not with new deals coming up for Mika Zibanejad and Adam Fox.
Shesterkin is also the unquestionable starter and with Keith Kinkaid proving he is a more than a capable backup after last season, he makes more sense cap wise. The 32 year-old is only on the books for $825,000 which is a great value when you look at his numbers. Kinkaid posted an 3-2-1 record in 9 games with a GAA of 2.59 and an .898 SV%.
The Blueshirts also have several goalie prospects in the pipeline that could emerge as backups themselves. Tyler Wall, Olof Lindbom, and Hugo Ollas could work themselves on to the roster in a year or two.
What is Georgiev worth on the market?
The rumored asking price at one time was a first round pick. That is not out of the realm of possibility if the acquiring team is expected to draft very late. Teams can also add a condition to protect that first round pick if it becomes a lottery selection.
What makes the most sense is for Georgiev to be part of a package deal. One package in particular would be to the Buffalo Sabres if that Jack Eichel deal ever comes to fruition. If it doesn’t, trading him to the Sabres makes sense for a second round pick and a prospect.
There should be better options to Drury than that. The Rangers are rumored to be interested in Christian Dvorak in Arizona, Sean Monahan in Calgary, and possibly Tomas Hertl in San Jose. There’s a clear potential for package deals with those teams.
The goal is to clear cap space more than anything.
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