Another final post on a player this summer, we dive into our Kaapo Kakko report card from last season. Kakko played 30 games with the Rangers last season, putting up 4-10-14 in those 30 games while being yo-yo’d around the lineup and press box for no real reason. There are many complaints about Kakko, and most are valid, but his treatment last season by Peter Laviolette is one of the all time blunders that led to his eventual trade for Will Borgen, a minimal return at best given what the Rangers were giving up.
It’s tough to grade out a Kaapo Kakko report card without stating again: Kakko was far from the problem and was actually a solid third line player. His line with Will Cuylle and Filip Chytiol was the only consistent thing the Rangers had going for them early last season. Unfortunately Kakko was the scapegoat for the Rangers, and his trade to Seattle–especially for a minimal return–is likely to come back and haunt the Rangers in a few years since Kakko put up a solid 10-20-30 in 49 games with Seattle after the trade.
There were many valid concerns with Kakko’s game. He was methodical and sometimes slow with his decision making. He also sometimes did not set himself up properly for receiving passes or one-timer opportunities, something he worked on as his Rangers career progressed.
Kakko was a solid two-way player for the Rangers and one of the only forward actually committed to playing defense with the Blueshirts last season. It was a rare moment of unanimous confusion and disgust from fans when Kakko was a healthy scratch as the Rangers tore themselves apart from the inside. Accountability is all we wanted, and we got the same old Kakko scratch. Much like scratching Petr Prucha, it got old fast.
There aren’t many knocks on Kakko’s game last season. He was excellent in his role and was a solid third line winger, the role he was expected to fill with the Rangers. His 14 points in 30 games averages out to an 11-27-38 line for an 82 game season. Given his solid two-way, three-zone play and without any powerplay time, that’s good value. Perhaps this is my bias showing though.
2024-2025 Kaapo Kakko report card grade: B
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