The floodgates might just have opened up for the New York Rangers.
In what was just the fourth-ever trade between the two New York teams, the New York Rangers traded defenceman Carson Soucy to the New York Islanders as part of their ongoing retool. In exchange, the New York Rangers will acquire a third-round pick in the 2026 NHL Draft.
With rumours swirling about Rangers' superstars Vincent Trocheck and Artemi Panarin, the team hadn't exactly ruled out trades for much of their roster.
That included Carson Soucy, who was previously acquired by the Rangers in a trade with the Vancouver Canucks. The return in that trade was a conditional third-round pick in the 2025 draft.
Just a few hours before the trade, the team announced that Carson Soucy would be a healthy scratch for their Monday game against the Boston Bruins, which ended in a 4-3 overtime win for the Rangers. The reason for the scratch was due to the Rangers finalizing the trade with the Islanders.
With the acquisition of Carson Soucy, the New York Islanders add some much-needed physicality for their blue-line. With Alexander Romanov out due to injury, Soucy should serve as an important piece in the team's hopes of remaining in the playoff picture; the Islanders are coming off of a big 4-0 win over the Philadelphia Flyers and they also sit four points ahead of the Flyers for third in the Metropolitan Division. However, six points separate five teams in the race for the playoffs, meaning that the Islanders need all the help they can get to hold off the likes of New Jersey and Columbus.
For the Rangers, it's possible to view Carson Soucy's stint with the team as a zero-sum game. Despite his struggles with the Rangers, the return New York got from this trade was the same as the price they paid to acquire Carson Soucy from Vancouver.
The funny thing? Carson Soucy will have a chance to play his former team twice over the next two days. The New York Islanders will host the Rangers on Wednesday at 7:00 P.M before heading over to Madison Square Garden for the Thursday evening rematch.