There’s an interesting trade rumor that has been going around involving the New York Rangers. No twitter blue checks have reported it, so we don’t know how substantial it is, but we sure have heard a lion’s share of fans talk about the potential move with great excitement.
Even if nothing is official, you know what they say, “where there is smoke there’s fire…or Willie Nelson getting ready for his next concert.” Anyway, this might be a deal worth taking a look into.
The proposed move would be the New York Rangers trading former second-overall pick Kaapo Kakko as part of a package to the Winnipeg Jets for Pierre-Luc Dubois.
Kakko was hyped up by Rangers fans to the point that fans at their draft party cheered when the New Jersey Devils selected Jack Hughes first overall. “He plays against men,” was the argument they used to justify Kakko being that year’s top draft prize.
Kakko has had growing pains in the city that never sleeps, to the point that Blueshirts fans wouldn’t feel terribly sad to move him.
Rangers fans want Dubois, but Kakko might be sent away.
Pierre-Luc Dubois hasn’t shown any desire to commit long-term with Winnipeg after he more or less forced a trade away from the Columbus Blue Jackets. He slots in as Winnipeg’s top center, but in New York, that job belongs to Mika Zibanejad.
Dubois would make a great second-line forward, but there is one potential problem. That role is currently expected to go to the big-money free agency acquisition, Vincent Trocheck.
The Rangers wouldn’t spend all that money on Trocheck to have him bumped down to the third-line center.
Here’s what makes the trade so appealing to Rangers fans. Getting Dubois would reunite him with his former Columbus teammate, Artemi Panarin. Assuming Dubois slots in that second-line center role, he’ll be paired with Panarin on his left wing.
Panarin is New York’s most valuable player, after goaltender Igor Shesterkin, and the organization would do next to anything to help the top-five winger in the NHL succeed.
Why bring this up now? Well, the Rangers just signed Kakko to a two-year bridge contract worth $2.1 million AAV. New York hasn’t committed long-term to Kakko, likely trying to save precious cap space. That makes Kakko moveable and expendable.
Some might say Rangers fans are overvaluing the relationship between Panarin and Dubois. They only spent two seasons together in Columbus, from 2017-2019.
However, in that two year span, Panarin put up 169 points. Dubois put up 109 points, during what were his rookie and sophomore seasons.
If the Rangers thought they had a real chance at getting Dubois, why sign Trocheck? Dubois wanting out of Winnipeg isn’t exactly brand new news. Even if there was a chance, the Rangers made a hefty investment in Trocheck that could complicate things.
No matter how much Trochek is getting paid, Rangers fans would welcome the arrival of one of the game’s top young centers.
Trocheck’s contract might complicate things when it comes time to re-sign Alexis Lafreniere, and fans won’t be happy with a ton of cap space being tied up in the bottom six center. That’s a problem for next season. Rangers’ fans want Dubois now.