NHL Trades Abound!

The past few minutes have been very exciting, and NHL GMs have been incredibly busy. There have been two has been one confirmed trade and one trade waiting in the wings:

Trade One
The Flyers trade Jeff Carter to Columbus for Jakub Voracek, a 2011 1st round pick (#8 overall) and a 2011 3rd round pick.

Trade Two
The Flyers have traded Kris Versteeg to Florida. Details pending.

Trade Three Two
The Flames have asked Robyn Regehr to waive his no movement clause for a trade to Buffalo.

Note: These have been broken by a few sources on Twitter.

Update: The second trade has been refuted by Bob McKenzie.

Update 4:00pm: The Flyers appear to have traded Mike Richards to the LA Kings for a package including Brayden Schenn and Wayne Simmonds and a 2nd round pick. This one still needs to be confirmed. This has been confirmed.

It’s amazing, my first reaction is to wonder what the Flyers are doing. It’s like they are rebuilding their entire team, but they didn’t need to. I didn’t think they would trade both Richards and Carter, let alone on the same day!

They certainly got a good haul for both players, but wow.

Update 4:20pm: Ok, now that the dust has settled, let’s take a step back. Clearly the locker room in Philly was a disaster, and something needed to be done. Each deal separately is a win/win for both sides.

To sum it up for the Flyers, they lose Carter and Richards. They gain Voracek, Schenn, Simmonds, and about $10 million in cap space to sign Bryzgalov. They also gain a top-ten pick in this year’s draft, which will also help them down the road. They may suffer a bit this year, but the Flyers are now loaded up for the future. This is now Claude Giroux’s and James van Riemsdyk’s team.

Rangers Acquire (And Sign) Tim Erixon From Calgary

In a bit of shocking news, the Rangers have acquired Tim Erixon and a 2011 5th round pick from Calgary in exchange for Roman Horak and two 2011 second round picks.  Erixon, Calgary’s first round pick in 2009 (23rd overall), had until 5pm today to reach an agreement on an entry level deal with the Flames.  Calgary, realizing that a deal could not be reached, dealt the 20 year old defenseman to the Rangers around 4pm.  If Calgary did not make this trade, they would have received the #53 overall pick as compensation for not signing Erixon.  The #53 pick set market value for Erixon, even if he would have been an instant top-10 pick in this draft due to the lack of depth in this year’s class.

Erixon is 6’2″ and 190 lbs.  He completed his second season in the Swedish Elite Leagues, finishing with a line of 5-19-24 in 48 games.  In the playoffs, he finished with a line 3-5-8 in 18 games.  The name might sound familiar, as he is former Ranger Jan Erixon’s son.  Erixon projects out to be a top-four defenseman, who is a fluid skater and just smooth in almost every aspect of the game.  He won’t stand out, but as a defenseman, that’s probably a good thing.  He could chip in offensively too, as the SEL is a notoriously low scoring league.

The Rangers have until 5pm to sign Erixon, or they get nothing in return as compensation.  Expect a deal to be announced shortly.

Update 4:03pm - Erixon has been signed to an entry level deal.

Update 4:20pm - Press release is after the jump

Read more »

Rangers Trade Ethan Werek To Phoenix

In a bit of a surprising trade, the Rangers have traded 2009 second round pick Ethan Werek to the Phoenix Coyotes in exchange for center Oscar Lindberg.  Lindberg was Phoenix’s 2010 second round pick, and has been playing in the Swedish Elite League.  This year in the SEL, Lindberg picked up 14 points (5-9-14) in 41 games.  Lindberg was the #10 prospect in the Coyotes system (per HockeysFuture), and is more of a defensive minded center who excels in the face off circle (a point of weakness for the Rangers).

Werek has more offensive upside, as he put together a fine season with the Kingston Frontenacs of the OHL, with a line of 24-28-52 in 51 games.  Werek has had several injuries throughout his career in Juniors, and that may have been a reason for concern on the Rangers part.  It’s a bit early to give up on Werek, despite his injuries.  He has a ton of offensive skill, and while the trade for is of second round picks, it looks like Werek has more skill, but will be more of a project.

Lindberg is much more polished than Werek, and appears ready to make the jump to the AHL next season.  From a business perspective, there could be two reasons the Rangers made this trade.  First, Werek could have asked for too much, which I doubt.  Second, and more likely, is that the Rangers are coming up on the 50 contract maximum for next season, and Werek was due an entry level deal.  Lindberg, since he is not playing in Juniors, does not require a contract right away, and the Rangers will still retain his rights.

This is another trade with Phoenix, but the first where we can really say we don’t know if there was a winner or a loser.  Considering the track record of trades with the ‘Yotes (Rozisval/Wolski, Korpikoski/Lisin, etc…), that may be a good thing.  This is one of those trades that we won’t be able to evaluate for another few years.  There are clearly reasons why the Rangers lost faith in Werek, be it injuries or business.  Lindberg is supposed to be more of a sure thing to make the NHL, and has been SEL’s best face-off man for a while now.  That is an area where the Rangers desperately need help.

The Inevitable Occurs: Rangers Get McCabe

Via Bob McKenzie, the Rangers have acquired Bryan McCabe from the Panthers for the low, low price of Tim Kennedy and a third round pick. Larry Brooks confirmed it. In 48 games with Florida, he’s got a 5-17-22 line and is a +3 for a team with a -11 goal differential overall.

McCabe, 35, missed a month with a broken jaw a little earlier this year, but he’s been back for just over a week now. We heard the two sides had a deal in place prior to the injury, so it’s not a surprise that they consummated a trade before Monday’s deadline. McCabe will be a free agent after the season, and his cap hit for the rest of the year is a little over $1.3M according to CapGeek. I believe the Rangers still have about $3.8M in wiggle room remaining (apologies for the uncertainty).

It’s hard not to absolutely love this deal. McCabe gives the Rangers exactly what they need, and that’s a veteran, left-handed defenseman with experience running the power play, and they did so without giving up a core piece a) off the NHL roster, or b) for the future. New York still has a first and two second round picks at their disposal. It’s unclear if he’ll be uniform in time for tomorrow’s game, but they really could use him with Marc Staal out. Either way, bravo. Great trade for the good guys.

Update: Michael Del Zotto’s been sent back to Connecticut to make room for McCabe. (h/t Bleeding All Blue)

As Voros Gets Waived, Looking Back At Voros-Eminger Trade

With Bob McKenzie of TSN, among others, reporting today that Aaron Voros has been put on waivers, I thought it would be fitting to look back at the trade the Rangers made on July 9, 2010.  New York traded Aaron “The People’s Champ” Voros and prospect Ryan Hillier to Anaheim in exchange for Steve Eminger. This was one of those under the radar type trades that few think much of when they happen, but sometimes mean a lot to a hockey club.

The thought process for Sather had to be that Voros had no role on the team and bringing in Eminger could potentially provide the Rangers with a stop-gap defender until some of their defensive prospects were ready.

A look at their numbers:

Eminger 49 GP 1G 3A -8 22PIM

Voros     12 GP 0G 0A -4 43PIM

If Eminger gave the Rangers anything it was going to be an easy win for the New York.  Obviously you can see that Voros has given the Ducks less than nothing, and has missed the last 21 games with an orbital bone fracture he sustained in a fight.  Nice to see Voros and Rick DiPietro have something in common.  Before someone asks, no the Rangers should not claim him, even if Boogaard is out for the year.  Players like Kris Newbury are more effective than Voros ever will be, so stay away.

On Eminger’s side of the ledger, despite scaring many of us, including myself, with his atrocious preseason that saw more injuries than quality play, Eminger has made himself a key cog for the young defense, turning it into a resounding victory for Sather.

I have been pleasantly surprised at how well Eminger has played over the totality of the season.  During a crucial part of the year, when Rozsival was first injured, it was Eminger who stepped in and filled that void very well.  I know for many Rangers fans it is easy to overlook that because it was just Rozsival, but at that point Rozi had been playing very good hockey for the club and having someone fill a top four role is not an easy task.

It would easy to focus on the fact that he has been scratched the last four games, but that for me is a product of other defenders rising and the Rangers trying to figure out what to do with Michael Del Zotto, then to Eminger himself.  There is no question there has been some slippage in the quality of Eminger’s play compared to early in the year, but his benching, for me, has been unjustified by performance overall.  I expect that Eminger will be back in the lineup for New York on Friday, and Del Zotto will likely be back in Hartford with the Whale

I find it reassuring to look back at this deal as the trade deadline approaches and see that Sather has done a very good job with trades the past few years.  Free agency for the most part is still awful, but feel confident as the deadline approaches that Sather will keep an eye on the big picture.

Rangers Acquire Wolski From Coyotes For Rozsival

According to Darren Dreger of TSN the New York Rangers have traded Michal Rozsival to the Phoenix Coyotes for Wojtek Wolski.  .  The move will save the Rangers 1.2 million against the cap this season and bring in an extremely talented if underperforming forward to give the Rangers another push as they look to rise to the ranks of contender.  Wolksi, 24, has six goals and ten assists in 36 games this season for the Coyotes after having a breakout year last year in which he posted a line of 23-42-65 in 80 games.

All day there has been trade talk surrounding the Rangers with their vast assortment of injuries with the latest being Alex Frolov out for the year with a knee injury.  To turn the disappointment that has been Frolov into the talent that is Wolski is beyond the scope of what many would let themselves imagine especially for only surrendering Rozsival.  This is a brilliant move by the much maligned Glen Sather who once again has found a way to correct a free agent contract mistake though the trade market.  Wolski has one year remaining on his deal at 3.8 million against the cap, but to compare that to the 5 million that Rozsival was due to count it only makes the deal look better.  A little over a month ago I pondered what a Wolski move would be like for the Rangers when there were first rumblings that he could be on the market.  The biggest thing that the Rangers have been lacking is secondary scoring and elite talent and Wolski has the potential to bring both of those things in droves.

From the Coyotes perspective they receive a veteran defender to merge into their core and will save 800K in salary next season.  Rozsival has three goals and 12 assists in 32 games so far this season for the Rangers.  There is a familiarity there for Maloney with Rozsival from his time in New York and he has the ability when healthy to eat up minutes.  The have to be concerns about his healthy considering he has missed the last two games with a rib issue and missed nine earlier this season with a shoulder and knee issue.

You have to consider that a move like this is likely the result of the relationship between Maloney and Sather due to their frequent trade partnerships and could be a piece that pushes the Rangers forward to another level.  I would have expected a move for Wolski to come at a much steeper price than this given his age, contract status and skill level.  This move gives the Rangers another toy to wind up and go play with Marian Gaborik in an attempt to get him into full gear this season.  Playing the skill of Wolski and Gaborik with the skill and physicality of Anisimov gives the Rangers a tremendous amount of potential and only makes the team deeper when Ryan Callahan returns from injury.  To this point in the season the Rangers have been a pleasant surprise, but now with the addition of young talent to go with all the homegrown talent that is emerging the Rangers have to now be considered a team to truly contend with in the Eastern Conference.

Rangers Acquire Stu Bickel From Anaheim

In a relatively minor trade, the Rangers have acquired defenseman Stu Bickel from Anaheim in exchange for defenseman Nigel Williams. Bickel, 24, is 6’4 and 218 lbs, and has played in six games with Anaheim’s AHL affiliate Syracuse Crunch. In those six games, Bickel has put together a line of 0-3-3 with 14 PIMs. Bickel is a typical stay at home defenseman, who has a bit of a mean streak to him. Williams, 22, was initially acquired by the Rangers in exchange for Brian Fahey in the 2009 offseason, and had a line of 0-1-1 with a -3 rating on a terrible Hartford Wolfpack/Connecticut Whale team. Williams had been a locker room cancer, according to Laurie Carr. As per Jesse Rubenstein, Williams had been requesting a trade all year.

This move was made to strengthen the Hartford defense locker room, which has been abysmal an issue this season, by ridding themselves of a clubhouse cancer.

Trade Winds: Rangers Acquire RW Chad Kolarik from Columbus

As being reported from various media outlets, the Rangers have acquired Columbus Blue Jacket RW Chad Kolarik in exchange for LW Dane Byers.  Originally drafted #48 overall by the Rangers in 2004, Byers played in only 6 games for the Rangers, tallying a single point, that being a goal against the Minnesota Wild.  Kolarik was drafted 199th overall by the Phoenix Coyotes in the same 2004 draft and subsequently went to fulfill 4 years of eligibility at the University of Michigan.  Kolarik has appeared twice for the Jackets this season, and never got his name on the scoresheet.

As an avid fan of the University of Michigan, its always nice to see one of their former players finding their way into the Blueshirts organization (still trying to get over Al Montoya).  Kolarik captained the Wolverines his senior year and was a leading candidate for the Hobey Baker (along with teammate and eventual winner Kevin Porter) until an injury sidelined him for a key part of the stretch run.  He averaged nearly 20 goals per season in college, which is solid considering most teams only play 40 games.  Kolarik has had some success in the AHL, averaging roughly 50 points in 2 seasons.  He is a very skilled skater with speed and quickness who can play with some grit and create chances for his own, which is just the type of player Tortorella enjoys.  I don’t see him being anything more than minor league player this season, with the potential to be called up to fill a roster spot in the event that someone gets injure.

As for Byers, it seems that the Rangers are content with the oversized players they currently have on the roster.  The 6’3” winger wasn’t able to make a consistent impact at the big league level.  The Rangers probably see more potential for Kolarik in Tortella’s system, and Byers will have to try and find his niche in the Columbus organization.

Rangers Acquire Todd White

Glen Sather was burning the midnight oil last night, as he acquired center Todd White from the Atlanta Thrashers in exchange for disgruntled enforcer Donald Brashear and perennial AHLer Patrick Rissmiller. Rissmiller, at a $1 million cap hit, was headed to Hartford for a third straight year, while Brashear’s $1.4 million cap hit was going to stay on the books for the Rangers, regardless of where Brashear played 35+ contract). White has one year remaining at a $2.375 cap hit.

To be perfectly honest, I have no idea what the Rangers gain from this trade, unless there is another one coming. Yes, the Rangers got something decent for absolutely nothing. But, the Rangers take on a larger cap hit from this trade, an extra $900,000 (Rissmiller is not included in this math since he was always destined for Hartford), for another forward. I understand that White had a few good seasons when playing with Ilya Kovalchuk, and maybe the Rangers are hoping White can regain that form playing with Marian Gaborik. What this does do though, is take a roster spot away from a youngster, possibly Dale Weise, or maybe even Mats Zuccarello-Aasen. I’m on the fence about it, it’s not a bad trade, but it’s puzzling. After some thought, the team is definitely better now than it was before the trade. White means that Brian Boyle might be Hartford bound, with Dale Weise and Derek Boogaard rotating as the 13th forward. The Rangers also lose two huge cancers in the Hartford locker room. The deal is another solid trade. It’s amazing how Sather pulls these off.

The Thrashers, meanwhile, have placed Brashear on waivers with the intention of buying him out, which will save them money, but not cap space, which they have plenty of anyway.

Rangers Acquire Matt McCue

The Rangers made a quiet move today, acquiring 22 year old defenseman Matt McCue from Anaheim for young forward Tomas Zaborsky. McCue, an undrafted free agent, is 6’5 and 220 lbs, and was signed by the Ducks in 2008. Zaborsky was the Rangers 5th round pick in 2006, and will be playing in Finland after a year in Charlotte/Hartford. This is a very minor deal, aimed to address the relatively thin Hartford blue line.