The New York Rangers have been involved in many trade rumors throughout the last month, but one specific deal might be completed soon. Ever since Filip Chytil was ruled out for the remainder of the season, adding a third-line center quickly became one of the top priorities to address at the deadline this year. Seattle Kraken Alex Wennberg was one name the Blueshirts were reportedly interested in, and now, a trade involving the center seems imminent.
Alex Wennberg was scratched for trade purposes, Rangers are a finalist to land him
Per Chris Johnston, the Kraken intend on making Wennberg a healthy scratch ahead of tonight’s matchup for the purpose of keeping him healthy ahead of a potential trade. The Rangers and the Colorado Avalanche are two teams that had expressed great interest in the depth center, making either organization the likely trade partner.
Wennberg, 29, has tallied 25 points in 60 games played for the Kraken so far this season. He’s playing in the final year of his contract, which comes with a cap hit of $4.5 million. This makes Wennberg a rental, and a pretty expensive one at that. The Rangers would likely have to move a roster player or have Seattle retain some salary in order to make this potential deal work.
Could anyone else be included in this potential trade package to New York?
Aside from Wennberg, the Rangers have also expressed interest in fellow Kraken F Jordan Eberle. He would be a perfect fit to play alongside Chris Kreider and Mika Zibanejad on the first line, so if the Blueshirts might already have a deal in the works with Seattle, it would make sense to expand this trade and include both players.
In order to acquire both Wennberg and Eberle, the Rangers would need to be comfortable giving up a pretty large sum. Multiple roster players, top prospects, and early-round draft picks would likely need to be included. It may seem like too much, but if the Rangers could pull off a trade for both Eberle and Wennberg, they could kill two birds with one stone and solidify their lineup for a Cup run in one move.