3 players the New York Rangers need to trade after elimination
2. Tony DeAngelo
Much like Strome, Tony DeAngelo is coming off a career season. He had by far the best season of his young NHL career, posting career highs of 15 goals, 38 assists, and 53 points in 68 games. His previous career-highs were five goals, 26 assists, and 30 points. However, just like Strome, DeAngelo is due a pretty substantial raise. He took a team-friendly deal before and that’s probably not happening again.
More from Puck Prose
- Detroit Red Wings 2023 Rookie Camp Has Plenty of Ups and Downs
- This Columbus Blue Jackets rookie doesn’t want to be forgotten
- 2 trades the Boston Bruins must make to secure the Stanley Cup
- 3 reasons the Avalanche won’t win the Stanley Cup in 2024
- This is a big year for Alex Turcotte and the Los Angeles Kings
Also, DeAngelo likely doesn’t fit on the Rangers blueline. Right now, he’s their second-best option on the right side if you solely look at time on ice. Jacob Trouba isn’t going anywhere. Adam Fox is quickly improving and you could easily argue he’s already better than DeAngelo.
There’s also the issue of DeAngelo’s defense. He was exposed against the Carolina Hurricanes, as he was arguably their worst defenseman, which is really saying something because every Rangers defenseman except for Ryan Lindgren had a bad series. DeAngelo is a liability in his own zone, which isn’t going to cut it.
It would be very good asset management if the Rangers traded DeAngelo in a package for a young second-line center. That would also free up some cap space so the Rangers could pursue a left-handed option, as their left side is a bit weak right now.