rangers flyers chris kreider

The draft is upon us, and with that comes endless rumors about what the Rangers will do with Chris Kreider. Currently the Rangers and Kreider do not have an extension in place, and Kreider is set to become an unrestricted free agent this time next year. The Rangers have two options: Trade him now or re-sign him. As mentioned this morning, trading him at the deadline is not an option.

Having already covered why the Rangers should re-sign him, trading him must also be explored. Nothing is guaranteed in this league, and even if the Rangers and Kreider enter good-faith negotiations, there’s no saying they wind up with a deal.

If the Rangers decide to trade Kreider, there are really only two options available to them. They can either trade at draft or trade following free agent frenzy day, after which the teams that missed out on the big names will be looking at the trade market to fill in holes. The return likely varies depending on the time of the trade.

Trade at the draft

This is always the most likely of scenarios, as teams have cap space to work with and draft outcomes can wildly swing team desires. What if Trevor Zegras falls to #8? Can the Rangers package Kreider and one of their spare bottom-six forwards to land the pick? Edmonton isn’t exactly known for being trade savvy, and they need someone, anyone, to play beside Conor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl.

What about Colorado, who desperately needs scoring depth outside of their top line? The West is wide open, so can a Kreider + Georgiev package pry the #4 away? Stepan and Raanta got the #7 and a prospect, so this offer may not be that far off. The #16 is far more likely, but I don’t think the Rangers trade Kreider in a deal that doesn’t get them back into the top-ten.

Or Buffalo and the #7. Kreider and Vesey, the latter of which has already been rumored in Buffalo. Given that Stepan package got the #7 and a prospect, history tells us Buffalo adds a prospect here.

A trade at the draft is likely a deal of this manner, one where the Rangers get back into the top-ten and draft one of those kids in the tier below Kakko/Hughes.

Trade after free agency

A trade after free agency is where things get a little more interesting. Contending teams that missed out on Artemi Panarin or Matt Duchene may look at Kreider as a missing link.

Calgary could be a prime team here, but that James Neal contract is really hurting them at the moment. Where I struggle is actual trade value here. Let’s assume a 1st round pick in 2020 is a given. Calgary could probably use Georgiev as well. Is that package enough to get the 1st and Dillon Dube?

Boston might think Kreider is enough for one more run at the Cup before their core ages out. Assuming again that a 2020 1st is a part of the deal, are they willing to give up Danton Heinen? Probably not, and you’d have to assume the Rangers want better than Trent Frederic. This is a little tougher to see, unless the Bruins add quantity.

The defending champion St. Louis Blues are an intriguing option here. Jordon Binnington likely isn’t going to repeat his Ken Dryden performance, so they will need to find some more balanced scoring. They have the cap space and the pieces to make it happen too.

If there’s a trade after free agency, it’s going to be for a pick and a player who is closer to the NHL, if not already in the league. It will be more like a deadline deal, but with less certainty on draft positioning.

A wild card here – packaging Kreider and Kevin Shattenkirk at 50% to Toronto for Mitch Marner. Naturally there are a lot of cap complications here on both sides, but I just wanted to have some fun and spitball here. This isn’t a real option, but I like being creative.

My personal hope is that the Rangers and Kreider come to some sort of agreement on a multi-year deal that’s fair, much like we discussed this morning. But as always, no player is untouchable in the right deal.

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