The Carson Soucy trade has been finalized, as the New York Rangers sent their veteran defenseman to the New York Islanders in exchange for a 2026 3rd round pick. Soucy was held out of last night’s win over Boston as rumors circled that his trade was being finalized. Urho Vaakanainen replaced him in the lineup last night–and played well too–as the Rangers will begin playing their depth pieces as more veterans are moved in the retool. As per usual, I have thoughts.
1. The Rangers received a 2026 3rd round pick in the Carson Soucy trade, which was expected given what we know about the rental market from years past. It sounds like this return wasn’t a surprise to anyone, as there were no outlandish statements about a masterclass trade or getting swindled. Sometimes, business is just straight forward.
2. It’s worth noting, though, that the Rangers surrendered a much higher pick in the 3rd round last year in their first Carson Soucy trade, sending the first pick in the round to Vancouver for the defenseman at the deadline last year. That move was questionable at best and Soucy simply never worked out with the Rangers. I’m sure a lot of eyes will be on Kieren Dervin, Vancouver’s pick with that return.
I don’t think it’s worth getting up in arms about “moving back 20 picks” as the sum of both Carson Soucy trades.
3. The Carson Soucy trade was the first trade made between the Rangers and Islanders since 2010, when the Rangers acquired Jyri Niemi from the Isles for a 6th round pick–this pick later went to Atlanta as part of the usual draft day trades. Soucy just welcomed his third child, and Chris Drury remembered people are people and kept Soucy close to home to be with his family.
4. Soucy was not a good Ranger on the ice. He was slow and so bad to the point where he was a healthy scratch last year. Mike Sullivan got as much as he could out of Soucy, making him look somewhat ok as a bottom pair defender. That helped recoup some trade value, or else we might have been looking at a later pick and harsher reviews of the Carson Soucy trade.
Soucy looked slow and had a lot of trouble moving the puck out of his end. He excelled with preventing zone entries, something he continued to do under Sullivan, but that was his only trick. The original Carson Soucy trade that brought him to the Rangers was a bad idea from the start.
5. We can’t really blame Soucy for Drury’s lack of vision or plan. Effort wasn’t the issue with Soucy, it was just effectiveness and diminishing skill sets on a team with no direction or leadership. Perhaps Drury thought Soucy could fake it as a partner with Adam Fox. That part wasn’t too far off, as Soucy looked great with Fox due to complementary skill sets in the defensive zone. But that wasn’t enough unfortunately, as Soucy just looked slow during his entire tenure with the Rangers.
6. The Carson Soucy trade was the first domino for the Rangers in their new retool. It makes sense that a rental would be the first domino, as they come with fewer complications than players under contract. More trades will come. It’s not a matter of if. It’s a matter of when.
Soucy isn’t going far, and will simply be in the visitor’s locker room on Wednesday for the first of a home-and-home with the Isles.
For those who bet, a Soucy anytime goal scorer prop for Wednesday and Thursday might be a good idea. Just based off history.
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