Rangers assign Alex Belzile to Hartford

The Rangers have assigned forward Alex Belzile to the Hartford Wolf Pack, again signaling they are preparing for a trade. Belzile has been with the Rangers for a few weeks now, but hasn’t made his way into the lineup due to the play of rookies Adam Edstrom and Matt Rempe. He is, however, Hartford’s leading scorer despite being with the Rangers for several weeks.

Sending Belzile to Hartford gives the Rangers his full cap hit in LTIR space at the trade deadline, jumping from $4.383 million to $5.158 million, a fairly significant chunk.

If/When Edstrom and Rempe are assigned to Hartford, that number jumps to $6.825 million, assuming my math is correct.

It is also worth noting that players must be on their AHL rosters by Friday to be eligible for the Calder Cup playoffs. While Belzile, Edstrom, and Rempe aren’t expected to be with the Rangers for the playoffs and their move to the AHL will be for the rest of the season, expect a paper transaction for Will Cuylle at some point this week.