The New York Rangers may not be finished with their deadline shopping after all, despite already making a splash with the Trade Deadline looming.
According to Larry Brooks of The New York Post, the Rangers are reportedly still looking to make a deal involving Patrick Kane, though would likely need some help to get any transaction over the finish line.
Kane, who is a pending unrestricted free-agent, remains undecided in his plans for this upcoming deadline, as he reiterated on Wednesday night. One thing that Kane has been decidedly less coy about, however, are his hopes to end up on Broadway should a deal come to light.
Asked for his thoughts following New York’s major splash on Vladimir Tarasenko earlier this month, the Blackhawks superstar replied that he was disappointed to hear the news.
“It’s not like the happiest I’ve been to hear about a trade,” Kane said on February 10th, a day after the Rangers and Blues came to terms on the seismic trade. “If things were going to happen, that was a team I was definitely looking at. It seems like they kind of filled their void and went ahead and made a deal.”
Should Kane end up with the Rangers after all, the winger’s $10.5M AAV would require New York and Chicago to get creative and involve a third team, Brooks explains. With double retention in a similar vein to the Toronto Maple Leafs Ryan O’Reilly move, Kane’s cap hit would come in at a much more manageable $2.625M, a number New York could plausibly fit with some mild maneuvering.
As for a potential return, Brooks points to Rangers General Manager Chris Drury’s lack of appetite for dealing New York’s lone remaining 2023 first round pick after shipping off Dallas’ selection for Tarasenko. Instead, it appears likely that any deal would revolve around either New York’s 2024 or 2025 first-round selection.
Patrick Kane, 34, has collected 16 goals and 45 points in 54 games this season. The Buffalo native has come on in a big way over the past week, however, tallying 7 goals and 3 assists in his last four games.
