Trading Chris Kreider would send the wrong kind of Rangers message
Chris Kreider is not the problem. He is not an issue in the room. Fact is, he is not among the most pressing dozen or so matters the Rangers and GM Chris Drury are dealing with at the moment.
But by highlighting Kreider’s name
in Chris Drury’s league-wide memo, the GM created more than some shock value. We are told that Drury has engaged in multiple conversations over the last 48 hours with counterparts about the Blueshirts’ senior player.
I don’t buy the suggestion that Drury used the memo-leak tactic to motivate his underachieving team. It is my understanding that the GM recognizes that it is imperative to change the dynamic, and the sooner the better.
So I kind of get it. Among the team’s veterans, Kreider has the most value. He has played up to at least every cent of his $6.5 million AAV on a contract that has two seasons remaining after this one. He might be able to bring a bounty in return. He has no baggage.
But what type of bounty, if that is even realistic? Stanley Cup contenders don’t generally sacrifice current value when they are seeking to fortify. Would Drury take a package of prospects and draft picks that are generally templates for deals around the trade deadline?
If so, this would be an indication of a teardown rather than a buildup. The ramifications on pending unrestricted free agent Igor Shesterkin would likely be massive and would have to be measured. Is the goalie signing up for a rebuild? Isn’t that actually where the goalie came in?
This is a whole other rabbit hole in which we could get lost for days.
Keep in mind that Kreider has a 15-team no-trade list. It may not matter if Ottawa would be willing to send Shane Pinto and a first-rounder to New York in exchange for Kreider. It probably doesn’t matter what Calgary would be willing to offer, no offense.
Would Buffalo, a perfect fit, be willing to trade Dylan Cozens for the winger? I wouldn’t think so. Would Anaheim, whose GM Pat Verbeek doesn’t have all that much to show for his tenure, be willing to send Trevor Zegras to New York in exchange for Kreider?
Would Buffalo, a perfect fit, be willing to trade Dylan Cozens for the winger? I wouldn’t think so. Would Anaheim, whose GM Pat Verbeek doesn’t have all that much to show for his tenure, be willing to send Trevor Zegras to New York in exchange for Kreider?
Again, it is unclear whether Drury’s priority is merely to shake up the core and change the dynamic or whether it is to make targeted deals that would improve this team’s prospects of getting those six extra wins in June?
If it’s the latter, I’m not quite sure that trading away the club’s most reliable playoff performer is the way to go. I’ll tell you this, as well, the Rangers would be talking about finding nine more wins and not six if Kreider had not been wearing the Blueshirt in Game 6 in Carolina last spring.
Of course, Kreider is an imperfect player. He is not the prototypical power winger folks might have envisioned at the start of his career. But everyone has known that for a very long time. No. 20 stopped being a ferocious puck-hunter in the wake of the Carey Price incident that was followed by a bevy of head-scratching goaltender interference calls the next season, remember? Yes, he should have more consistent impact at five-on-five.
But Kreider has evolved into one of the most productive goal scorers in the league and one of the most dangerous special teams weapons extant on each side of the puck, attributes that should elevate the winger onto the USA’s Four Nations squad even if he is a role-playing fourth-liner.
And he has served this organization honorably from the moment he arrived fresh-faced off the Boston College campus for the start of the 2012 playoffs. He is admired for his generosity within the organization and within the hockey community. His work ethic is legendary.
I almost hesitate to point this out after excoriating the core just a day ago, but Kreider has become the latter day Mr. Ranger. He is the organization’s institutional memory. He is the lifeline to Henrik Lundqvist and Rick Nash, to Ryan Callahan and Ryan McDonagh, to Derek Stepan and Marty St. Louis, to Marian Gaborik and Ruslan Fedotenko. To John Tortorella.
Of course, the original Mr. Ranger, the beloved Rod Gilbert — whom Kreider trails by 93 goals (406-313) for the all-time franchise record — was flat out released seven weeks into his 16th season by then GM John Ferguson nearly 47 years ago to the day.
And you thought waiving Barclay Goodrow was disrespectful ?
The Rangers have serious issues with which to contend. The Drury Memo has added another layer to it all. He has thrown a grenade into the room, but no one can quite tell whether the pin is in place or not.
Chris Kreider is not the problem. And unless there is a bounty coming back in return that fortifies the 2024-25 Rangers — unlikely, but perhaps not impossible because it only takes one dancing partner — trading Kreider is not the solution, either.
