Rangers Rumor Mill: Yandle still most talked about trading chip

Yandle celebrates his goal vs NJ (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

Yandle celebrates his goal vs NJ (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

The NHL trade deadline is now 6 weeks away and the Rangers have yet to fully come out of this funk they are in. After last night’s defeat to the rival Islanders, I began scouring the net for any hint of trade rumors and of course, Keith Yandle comes up most often.

So let’s go.

[su_quote cite=”Kevin Allen, USA TODAY” url=”https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nhl/2016/01/10/nhl-trading-season-canadiens-rangers-lightning-blues-ducks/78595394/”]The most logical player for the Rangers to trade is defenseman Keith Yandle and yet he seems like a player they shouldn’t move… Yandle, 29, is a skillful puck-moving defenseman who would come in handy in the playoffs when goals are difficult to create. But the Rangers aren’t playing like a top contender (4-5-1 in their past 10). Yandle, who costs the Rangers half of his $5.25 million cap hit, isn’t likely to be re-signed…The Rangers could probably land a good return, something that would reduce the sting of parting with a first- and second-round pick, plus Anthony Duclair and John Moore, to Arizona to get Yandle at last year’s deadline.[/su_quote]

My Take: I don’t disagree with Yandle being the most logical trade asset the Rangers have, but I think if the Blueshirts continue to teeter-totter, they just can’t trade Yandle away.

[su_quote cite=”Allan Muir, SI” url=”https://www.si.com/nhl/2016/01/13/players-most-likely-to-be-traded-before-2016-nhl-trade-deadline”]Teams hot in pursuit of a conference title rarely move top-six defenders ahead of the deadline, but the Rangers are in a unique situation here. Coach Alain Vigneault has little faith in the 29-year-old, using him sparingly at five-on-five as well as on the power play, his supposed specialty. Re-signing the pending UFA seems unlikely, so it makes sense to get something in return before he skips away for nothing, even if it creates a hole that has to be filled. He won’t generate anything close to the return he did for the Coyotes last winter (Anthony Duclair, John Moore and a 2016 first-round pick), but even a second-rounder and a B-level prospect would be worth it to wash their hands of this mistake.[/su_quote]

My Take: This is the perfect example of guy looking only at a stat sheet. AV uses Yandle in the offensive zone because he’s the Rangers best threat. In the defensive zone, AV gravitates towards, McDonagh, Girardi, Staal and Klein. So his notion of a 2nd rounder and a B-level prospect is ridiculous.

[su_quote cite=”Larry Brooks, NYPOST” url=”https://nypost.com/2016/01/13/keith-yandles-future-and-three-other-pressing-rangers-issues/”]As Gorton and his staff scour the market and maintain keen interest in Jonathan Drouin, we can report that trustworthy sources have told The Post the team has not inquired even once about Columbus winger Cam Atkinson.[/su_quote]

My Take: Considering how much Torts is a fan of Atkinson, this isn’t a shock. Does that mean the whispers of Scott Hartnell are true?

 

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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