KHL to cancel remainder of season; Will Kravtsov return?

A bit of an international hockey bombshell hit yesterday, with the KHL proposing to cancel the remainder of the regular season and go right to the playoffs following the Olympics. It was a surprising bit of news, as the KHL regular season still had another month. The conversation then, naturally, shifted to whether or not we would see a Vitali Kravtsov return to the Rangers.

If we see a Kravtsov return, then the question would be when. Kravtsov’s Traktor currently sit in second place in their division and are a very good team. They are actually tied for the most points in the KHL, even though they are in second place. Technically they are tied for first, but Metallurg has a game in hand, giving them first place for now. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see them out in the first round, but it’s not likely. So expecting Kravtsov back before the trade deadline, if he does actually return, would be setting your hopes too high.

I’m not 100% sure on the playoff format, but I would think Traktor win at least one round, probably two. At the earliest, we’d be looking at an early April Kravtsov return, again if he decides to come back. Even that seems aggressive.

Will Kravtsov return?

While the timing seems to be April, the question is still whether or not Kravtsov would actually return to the Rangers. The safe bet here is no, he will not be returning to the Rangers. I lean with this line of thinking, as I think the relationship with Chris Drury is far too damaged. But crazier things have happened before.

In the scenario that Kravtsov does return, would he even go straight to the Rangers? The NHL trade deadline is in late March, so he wouldn’t be back before then. He’s on the reserve roster, so he’d still be able to play in the playoffs, much like Chris Kreider in 2012. However the Rangers are going to make moves to upgrade their roster now, and not wait for him. There may not even be a spot in the top-nine for him. If that comes to be, then Kravtsov isn’t going to Hartford for 3 games. That’s just silly.

There is, however, value in adding him to the playoff roster as a depth piece in case of injury. He’d certainly be the most skilled player in reserve should a major injury happen.

Something else to consider, and this is borderline galaxy braining things, is this may boost his trade value a little bit. An acquiring team may get him for a late run this season, playoff results dependent. Remember this is still a very skilled top ten pick, so there’s value. It’s likely not much of a boost, and this is admittedly galaxy braining things a bit, but again NHL GMs are difficult to figure out.

Odds are we won’t see a Kravtsov return to the Rangers. A trade needs to happen for both player and team to move on. Too bad, the kid has a ton of talent.