The New York Rangers made their second major trade in less than two weeks when they dealt forward Kaapo Kakko to the Seattle Kraken on Wednesday. Defenseman Will Borgen was the main asset that came back from the Kraken; they also received third- and sixth-round picks in the 2025 NHL Draft. We know the Rangers have needed to add to their defense corps since trading Jacob Trouba to the Anaheim Ducks on Dec. 6, but what exactly does Borgen bring to New York?
Borgen, a 6-foot-3, 204-pound right-handed shooter, was a fourth-round pick by the Buffalo Sabres in 2015 who was selected by the Kraken in the 2021 NHL Expansion Draft. Since then, he’s played 233 NHL games, including all 82 in each of the previous two seasons.
Borgen signed a two-year contract with an average annual value of $2.7 million in the summer of 2023. His cap hit is $300,000 more than Kakko’s, making the money essentially a wash. Borgen can become an unrestricted free agent after this season, so the Rangers aren’t on the hook for any long-term money. It also makes Borgen tradeable if the Rangers want to go in that direction.
Related: NHL insider believes Will Borgen is ‘Perfect Fit’ for Rangers
What type of player is Will Borgen, Rangers’ newest D-man?
One look at his offensive numbers makes it clear that Borgen wasn’t brought with the expectation that he’ll juice the attack. He has nine goals and 55 points in his 247-game NHL career, and his 25 points (three goals, 22 assists) last season was a career best. The Rangers acquired him because they need someone reliable on the back end to help clean up the messes they’ve been creating in their own zone.
“He’s not a sexy or flashy player. He’s not going to wow you with any one part of his game,” Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff said about Borgen. “But he’s reliable, he’s got some size, he’s got better-than-average feet, and I think he’s a guy who can help quiet down the noise in the Rangers’ own end, which is exactly what they needed at this exact moment in time.”
Borgen isn’t going to be a player who drives possession or scoring chances. He has only been positive in relative expected goals (xG) in one season, according to Natural Stat Trick. That came during his 36 games in 2021-22. In other words, the Kraken were allowing more expected goals with him on the ice than when he wasn’t.
One positive aspect of Borgen’s game is on the penalty kill. Seattle allowed fewer shot attempts and fewer expected goals when he was on the ice while shorthanded than they did without him — and the difference was significant during the past two seasons. They allowed 26.2 fewer shot attempts per 60 minutes with Borgen on the PK in the past two full seasons.
This acquisition certainly won’t save the Rangers’ defense, but it does give them another playable defenseman and gets at least rookie Victor Mancini, one of the weak links in recent weeks, out of the lineup. Mancini, who made the team after an impressive training camp, has struggled in recent weeks. His minus-19.77 percent relative xG at 5-on-5 is the second-worst among all defensemen who have played at least 100 minutes this season. He was sent to AHL Hartford to get more experience.
With Borgen and Urho Vaakanainen, who was acquired in the trade that sent Trouba to the Ducks, the Rangers have a path to having solid options across their blue line. That will be especially true when K’Andre Miller returns from an upper-body injury. The next step would be to reduce Ryan Lindgren’s ice time, as he has not been very effective this season. Borgen’s addition to the lineup could help do just that, as well as bringing some of the stability the Rangers need on the back end.
