Rangers Roundup: The latest trade insights and rumors
The trade deadline is just 11 days away and I expect the rumor winds to swirl stronger than a tropical storm.
McKenzie on the Rangers
Bob McKenzie dished on the Blueshirts during the latest NBC broadcast.
“In Kevin Hayes, I think they expected that there was going to be this huge market for him – and that’s not to say that there’s not. But I think they’ve been a little bit surprised lately at how much action Mats Zuccarello has been getting because he’s been playing so well on that top line with Mika Zibanejad and Chris Kreider. And the fact that he’s playing so well and he’s healthy has really primed the market a little bit.”
Nichols on Hockey
It’s true, Zuccarello has been so red hot that he’s piqued the interest of many teams. Still, McKenzie does not believe he will fetch a team’s first round pick and that a 2nd rounder and a prospect is the likely return.
“Now, if they don’t get what they want on Hayes, then I could easily see them saying, ‘You know what. We’re not going to trade them just for a bag of pucks or a soft deal at the deadline. We will keep him and we will try and sign him.’”
Nichols on Hockey
McKenzie also discussed the unlikelihood that the Blueshirts would trade and then sign Hayes and Zuccarello in the offseason. A scenario that he called “dreams”.
Wyshynski’s Bold NYR Prediction
The Rangers trade someone with term left. Yes, Kevin Hayes, Mats Zuccarello and Adam McQuaid are gonzo as pending free agents. But the Rangers dip a little deeper into roster for the rebuild and trade away a player with additional contract years. The hockey world hopes it’s Chris Kreider. It’ll probably end up being Vladislav Namestnikov.
ESPN
If you saw our trade meter from yesterday, we noted that Namestnikov was more likely to be dealt than Kreider.
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