2:55PM: Emily Kaplan said on ESPN that the Rangers and Hurricanes had increased discussions but that Carolina has not “offered anything that the Rangers want.”
2:04PM: Emily Kaplan said on ESPN that Carolina has been pushing for Trocheck.
10:49AM: On TSN, Emily Kaplan speculated that the Wild offer for Trocheck included defenseman David Jiricek, Charlie Stramel and a 2027 first round pick that the Rangers have deemed was not enough. Jiriceck was just trade to Philly for forward Bobby Brink.
8:55AM: Elliotte Friedman tweets that the Rangers have told teams that they won’t trade Trocheck just to trade him and that they will keep him if they don’t get what they want.
7:27AM: The NHL trade deadline is today at 3PM.
Vincent Trocheck remains a candidate to be traded after sitting last night.
The Rangers traded Sam Carrick to Buffalo last night.
Braden Schneider’s name had been mentioned but it was said earlier this week that Chris Drury was “willing to listen” on Schneider but that the “ask for Braden Schneider indicates that he’s not really willing to trade him.” (Ray and Dregs)
Adam Rotter: It’s finally here. For so long we’ve been waiting and wondering what the Rangers would do today or by today. Artemi Panarin was moved already and since then the focus has been mostly on Trocheck. The Rangers don’t need to move him and Chris Drury has set a high price and now we finally see if someone will meet that price.
Taylor Raddysh could be moved for bottom-six depth for a playoff team, but he won’t net much more than a late round pick. He also has a year left on his contract, but his spot would be better utilized to give someone like Brett Berard or Jaro Chmelar a regular spot.
I don’t expect Braden Schneider to move but it’s not impossible with how in-demand right shot defensemen are. I still think Schneider can be part of the solution long-term but if someone is willing to pay a hefty price than it may be worthwhile. The other factor with Schneider is that as an RFA the Rangers do have a bit of a decision to make on what kind of contract they would offer him. They could try for a bridge or go to arbitration for a year and punt the decision but if he takes a big step than he will cost more to sign long-term and if he doesn’t take a step his value will be lower than it is right now. They could extend him long-term to give some cost certainty and hope that he either takes those steps or they could try to trade him before whatever future no-trade or no-move clauses kick in. So it’s not only about whether they think Schneider is worth keeping to build around, but what it may cost short and long-term to do so.
So it’s possible that it’s an eventful day for the Rangers and one that hopefully continues to set a path forward, or it’s possible not a lot happens and everything just goes to the offseason.