Day: February 24, 2020

In a trade just for the NHL deadline, the Rangers have dealt defenseman Brady Skjei to the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for a first round pick in the 2020 draft.  The move frees up $5.25M a year for the next four years, allowing them some room to negotiate wiht pending free agents Alexandar Georgiev, Tony DeAngelo, Ryan Strome and Brendan Lemieux.

The former first round draft pick of the Rangers has struggled since his rookie season, failing to convert on a contract that looked to lock in term in exchange for protection against the latter years back in 2018.  The contract unfrotunately ended up coinciding with the Rangers rebuild, and a drop off in form that has seen him drop from a carer high of 39 points in his 2016-17 rookie season, to 25, 25 and 23 (ikn 61 ygames before the trade) over the last three seasons.

Forward Chris Kreider and the Rangers have agreed on a seven year contract that will see him keep the Boston native on Broadway for as much as seven years barring a trade or retirement.  Kreider has been a force in the middle part of this season, and is on track to set career highs in goals and points as he  has meshed well with Mika Zibanejad.

Following years of rumors, it came down to the last hours of the 2020 NHL trade deadline, with the parties reportedly agreeing to a contract around 11am Eastern this morning, a deal that saw the Rangers yield up seven years inreturn for a slightly lower $6.5M annual average value for Cap purposes.