Per Frank Seravalli, the latest NY Rangers trade deadline rumor is that Timo Meier is the Rangers top target, not Patrick Kane. This shouldn’t come as a surprise, as the Rangers have been rumored to be in on Meier for a while. Give Kane’s health –he needs hip surgery– and contract, he’s sliding down the Rangers want list.
That said, Kane could still wind up with the Rangers if the cost is low enough. Kane is rumored to want an extension, which is something the Rangers can’t afford. He’d be a pure rental.
Meier, while technically not a pure rental since he’s an RFA at the end of the season, will most likely be treated as a rental by most teams. He comes with a $10 million qualifying offer, which few contending teams can fit next season. It’s more likely he would be traded at the draft to recoup assets.
If other rumors are to be believed, then the Rangers are competing with the Devils for Meier. Of course, they could simply be driving up the acquisition cost for the Devils, but that remains to be seen. Meier fits a lot of what the Rangers need if they go for a top six forward, except for cheap acquisition cost.
We are getting close to silly season, so we will likely see a lot of NY Rangers trade deadline rumors like this in the coming weeks. Don’t expect Chris Drury to give up anything significant, but this is the Rangers window to win.
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