The New York Rangers’ 5-1 loss to the New Jersey Devils on Monday night signaled more alarm bells for the Blueshirts.
The reigning “regular season champions” have dropped six of their last seven games, and if things don’t change quickly, it could spell trouble. The question becomes, where do they go from here? It could very well start with trading longtime Ranger and fan favorite Chris Kreider.
Since joining the team in 2012, Kreider has quickly emerged as a goal-scoring threat, but his best three seasons have been his three most recent. Kreider recorded three seasons of 30-plus goals, including a 52-goal season in 2021-22. Unlike many on the team, Kreider’s goal scoring has translated to the playoffs, where, over the last three seasons, he has scored 24 goals and 13 assists for 37 points in 43 playoff games—nearly a point per game pace.
However, the 33-year-old still has two years remaining on his seven-year, $45 million contract. And with an upcoming cap hit of $6.5 million a year, are the Rangers better off moving on from Kreider?
“Shouldn’t trivialize someone’s feelings, but how you feel doesn’t affect your ability to do something that you’ve done for the entirety of your life – unless you let it,” Kreider said in regards to the trade speculation. “We don’t necessarily know what this is right now, right? This could just be part of the story. We look back at this and say, ‘This made us better.’ There’s frustration, angst, tension.”
The biggest reason to move on from Kreider isn’t his playing ability. He is still scoring goals; he has 10 through 20 games this season, and while he is yet to record an assist, he is still scoring on the team with the 12th most goals in the league. He has played the best hockey of his career since signing his extension, and there is no reason to believe that he won’t continue to score goals at a high level. However, the $6.5 million he is due annually over the next two seasons is what could see him be moved.
The Rangers are projected to have nearly $22 million in cap space in the 2025 offseason. That is before the likely big money extension for Igor Shesterkin, which is estimated to land him between $11 million and $12 million, and the RFA contracts due to Kaapo Kakko, Will Cuylle, and Zac Jones. After making all of those moves, it will leave the Rangers with little to no cap space to make free agency signings critical to extending the Rangers seemingly closing window.
As opposed to Jacob Trouba, Kreider’s value allows the Rangers to retain less of his contract, freeing up more cap space moving forward. Also, a return for Kreider could also mean taking on rental players that could aid a Rangers team that still has cup aspirations.
However, although difficult for many Ranger fans to digest, moving on from Kreider could be necessary for preserving their future.
