Chris Drury and the Rangers made their first big move of the trade deadline season, if you don’t count the JT Miller trade as a deadline deal, sending Ryan Lindgren and Jimmy Vesey to Colorado for Juuso Parssinen, Calvin de Haan, a 2nd round pick, and a 4th round pick. A Ryan Lindgren trade (and a Jimmy Vesey trade) was expected, though it is a bit surprising to see it done so quickly. As per usual, I have thoughts.
1. First, not trade related, I’m annoyed because I had a whole series of “what if” posts ready for this weekend. What if the Rangers buy, sell, and do both/retool on the fly. The answer is the Rangers will do both. They will sell their UFAs and any other potential rental, and they will look to retool on the fly if they can. It’s clear the Rangers won’t be buying any rentals. Sometimes your plans get ruined, kind of like how the Rangers plans this year got ruined by Barclay Goodrow.
2. As for the Ryan Lindgren trade, we knew this was coming at some point this season. The writing was on the wall when Chris Drury refused to give Lindgren a long term extension, and for good reason. Lindgren was an absolute warrior for the Rangers and a heart and soul player. But it’s clear injuries and a poor fit in Peter Laviolette’s system led to his regressing play. He unfortunately lived long enough to become the villain.
The timing of the Ryan Lindgren trade makes sense though, since he can sneeze the wrong way and be out for a few weeks.
3. It was a little surprising to see Vesey as a part of the Ryan Lindgren trade, but Colorado knew what they wanted and didn’t waste time. Vesey rejuvenated his career in New York, and did everything the Rangers asked of him. He was a victim of the numbers game this season, but that was due to no fault of his own. Adam Edstrom and Sam Carrick simply played better, even if Vesey was pretty good himself. He’s a solid bottom six player that the Rangers may miss, but was also replaceable.
4. The real prizes of the Ryan Lindgren trade are the draft picks. The Rangers didn’t have many picks this year, even with the Jacob Trouba and Kaapo Kakko trades, and this helps restock the cupboard. If I were to break this down, I’d guess the 2nd round pick is for Lindgren and the 4th round pick is for Vesey. The picks will be the better of the Colorado/Carolina 2nd round pick and the better of the Colorado/Vancouver 4th round pick. The Blueshirts now have 8 picks in rounds 2-8 this year, with potentially no first rounder.
5. There was some talk about Juuso Parssinen as a potential 3C, but I just don’t see it. He’s only 24, but I think at this point he is what he is. There’s a reason why Colorado sent him packing not even three months after acquiring him from Nashville earlier this season. He is what he is, and he’s basically a 13/14F at this point. The Rangers need center depth, so it’s not a bad thing. He is what he is. He, like Calvin de Haan, were included in the Ryan Lindgren trade for roster and cap purposes, most likely.
6. Funny enough, de Haan is probably an upgrade on Lindgren in the lineup and potentially a small perk of the Ryan Lindgren trade. It doesn’t take much to be better than Lindgren, at least for the Rangers, since the bar was practically underground at this point. de Haan’s acquisition essentially ensures Matthew Robertson won’t play, despite his call up. Though this does assume Zac Jones both remains a Ranger and remains in the lineup. Neither are a guarantee.
7. In the end, the Ryan Lindgren trade was a necessary trade for the Rangers. It was clear he wasn’t in their long term plans, and they needed to find a way to get Jones or another puck mover in the lineup. This probably should have been done in the offseason, but as we are seeing, this offseason was a straight up disaster for Chris Drury and the Rangers.
Better late than never, but this past offseason probably cost the Rangers a shot at a Stanley Cup this season.
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