The New York Rangers are entering another crucial offseason with plenty of questions. After winning the President’s Trophy with a franchise record 114 points, the Blueshirts fell in game six of the Eastern Conference Finals for the second time in three seasons.
Something needs to change this offseason, and Rangers president and general manager Chris Drury will need to get creative with a bunch of large contracts and Igor Shesterkin in line for a massive raise.
A couple of moves have already been made, including re-signing restricted free agent Kaapo Kakko to a one-year, $2.4 million contract and placing veteran forward Barclay Goodrow on waivers in hopes of getting his $3.641 million cap hit off the books — which they did as the San Jose Sharks claimed the veteran forward.
Still, more moves need to be made, and the Blueshirts could potentially trade a former member of the kid line.
The Rangers could trade Filip Chytil
Filip Chytil captured Rangers’ fan’s hearts during the squad run to the 2022 Eastern Conference Finals on a line dubbed “the kid line” alongside Kakko and Alexis Lafrenière.
After a great follow-up season in which Chytil registered career highs in goals (22), assists (23), and points (45), the 24-year-old signed a four-year $17.75 million contract.
So far, that contract has aged poorly. Due to suffering a concussion, Chytil played in just 10 regular-season games, registering no goals and six assists, before making a triumphant return during the playoffs and appearing in six games without registering a point.
With Chytil’s injury risk and hefty cap hit, alongside the fact that he returned from the injury at the end of the season, the time to trade the 24-year-old may be now.
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What could the Rangers get back for Chytil?
It would depend on how Drury would want to manage his assets. With Chytil’s age and being under control for the next three seasons, it feels like the Rangers could use him in a deal to acquire a star winger like Nikolaj Ehlers or Patrik Laine. Or the Blueshirts could trade Chytil for draft picks and then use the $4.4 million in cap space to upgrade in the open market.
The Rangers need to do something this offseason to get themselves over the hump, and perhaps trading Chytil will be similar to when they traded Mike Gartner, a move that some fans didn’t like but ultimately helped the Rangers win the Stanley Cup.
