NHL trade deadline: Are the Rangers going to trade Mats Zuccarello?
The New York Rangers may not be able to re-sign forward Mats Zuccarello, so they may decide to trade him before the NHL trade deadline.
By
Adam Gretz
•
1 min read
The New York Rangers made the biggest trade at last year's deadline when they sent their captain, Ryan Callahan, to the Tampa Bay Lightning for Martin St. Louis after it became clear they would not be able to re-sign Callahan. Clearly they are not afraid to make a significant move involving a key player at the deadline even when they are in a position to contend, especially when there is a chance they are going to lose that player for nothing.
They might be doing it again this season.
ESPN's Katie Strang reported on Saturday that it is looking more likely that the Rangers will trade forward Mats Zuccarello before Monday's trade deadline and teams have already been told that the he is available.
The 27-year-old Zuccarello is an unrestricted free agent after this season and given the Rangers' salary cap situation, which has been further complicated the past couple of years by the recent contract extensions to defensemen Dan Girardi and Marc Staal, it may not be possible for the Rangers to do a deal with Zuccarello.
He has 35 points (12 goals, 23 assists) in 58 games this season for the Rangers and was their leading scorer a year ago when the team reached the Stanley Cup Final.
The Rangers have been rumored to be in the mix for Toronto Maple Leafs center Tyler Bozak if they can make it work from a salary standpoint. For that to happen they would likely need to move somebody else out, but it is probably not worth it for what Bozak is.
On one hand, it's understandable that the Rangers would not want to lose an asset like Zuccarello for nothing if they cannot re-sign him. But he is also an important piece of their roster, a big part of their scoring depth and they have a legitimate chance to go on another deep run in the playoffs, especially once they get starting goalie Henrik Lundqvist back in the lineup. This is as good of a team as there is in the Eastern Conference. Do you really want to mess with that by moving out an important player because you're afraid he is going to leave in a few months?
