It seems very likely that he’s only going to be discussed with last year in mind as if that wasn’t a complete clusterf*** for the entire Rangers organization and that Kreider wasn’t dealing with a bunch of injuries and the blowback from the trade memo.
He’s healthy this offseason, and it seems very likely that last year will just be an aberration. There will be some age-related decline, but you’re still looking at 2x$6.5M for a guy that’s a great PKer, is a top net-front powerplay guy, and is a good bet for 25-30G on the year. He also has the history of being a good playoff performer with numerous clutch goals under his belt.
In a really bad UFA market, why wouldn’t other teams want someone like that? I get why Drury wants to trade him, but I also don’t think the Rangers would feel bad if he ended up staying.