Rangers Roundup: Draisaitl trade? Hayes gone? Kovalchuk, RFA’s qualified, and Zucc staying

The latest on the New York Rangers around the web.

Larry Brooks packed a ton of information in his latest edition of Slap Shots this Sunday. I urge everyone to give it a read here, but I will break it down with my perspective below.

Leon Draisaitl to NY

First off….YES! Secondly, highly unlikely!

Larry Brooks wrote that the Rangers might consider taking on all of Milan Lucic’s awful and long contract if Edmonton were to add Leon Draisaitl. Consider? I don’t know if Brooks is joking here or what, but Jeff Gorton would jump all over that!

Well, here’s how Edmonton writers responded.

RFA’s Qualified

We’ve been talking about the Rangers RFA’s for awhile now. Brooks informs us that they have been qualified but the likelihood of them all being on the ice for training camp is zero. That’s a big statement to make but coincides with the rumor buzz that one of either Jimmy Vesey, Vlad Namestnikov, Ryan Spooner, Brady Skjei, or Kevin Hayes will be moved.

High Interest in Kevin Hayes

According to Brooks, lots of interest in Hayes. This is a bit of a stunner because Hayes is a big versatile forward who can play center or the wing. But the Blueshirts have plenty of those players stockpiled in Lias Andersson, Vlad Namestnikov, etc…

In truth, of all the RFA’s the Rangers have Kevin Hayes could bring back a big defenseman or help move up in the draft. Hayes’ good buddy and old college teammate Johnny Gaudreau is in Calgary and a potential swap for defenseman, Dougie Hamilton might make some sense. Also, if the Rangers can feature Hayes and the #9 pick with some sweetners to Carolina for the #2 pick, they can get the highly coveted Andrei Svechnikov.

Keeping Zuccarello

Per Brooks, he feels that Mats Zuccarello will be reporting to camp this summer. There is also some hedging in his article that if Gorton has a change of heart at the draft he could be moved.

My take on Zuccarello this whole time is that the Rangers will keep him and possibly name him captain. He’s the perfect player to help lead these kids too.

Latest on Kovalchuk

Ilya is on the East coast talking with teams about coming back. We know for certain he met with Boston this weekend but Brooks is saying that Ilya still remains interested in the Rangers. He adds the caveat that Ilya wants the Rangers to go out and add more pieces to entice him to come though.

I’m still of the mindset that if the Rangers give Kovalchuk either 6 million for 2 years or goes 5 million for 3 years, he will come to NY. On a side note, throw in the St. Louis Blues as a team with keen interest in him too.

Anthony Scultore has been covering the New York Rangers and the NHL since 2014. His work also appears at... More about Anthony Scultore

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