The New York Rangers are never done looking to find ways to create cap space.
The team announced Wednesday afternoon that they have acquired a fifth-round pick in the 2025 NHL Entry Draft from the Minnesota Wild in exchange for Ryan Reaves. Following the trade, the Rangers now have eight picks in the 2025 NHL Entry Draft.
Reaves, 34 years old, had agreed to a one-year, $1,750,000 deal with New York this past offseason. In 12 games this season, Reaves has not recorded a point but has totaled 44 hits.
In 81 games with the Rangers over parts of two seasons (2021-22 and 2022-23), recording five goals and eight assists for 13 points, along with 55 penalty minutes.
With the trade, the Rangers have just under $2 million in cap space that can increase further up until the trade deadline as long as the roster stays at its current 22 players total.
The emergence of Julien Gauthier throughout the last two weeks made Reaves expendable for a team looking for more offensive results. Reaves had not seen the ice since a November 12th game against the Nashville Predators. Gauthier has recorded four total points (three goals) in 12 games for New York.
The absence of Reaves though could potentially limit the Rangers’ physicality. As an on-ice enforcer, Reaves was a key member of New York’s veteran leadership team who rarely lost fights and was usually the first person to stick up for his teammates after a hard hit.
New York’s roster currently sits at 22 players.
