Early Trading: Rangers put big names on the trade block

TSN Hockey Insider Chris Johnston joins Gino Reda to discuss the trade talk coming from around the league, including some big names out of New York, and the attention Blue Jackets defenceman David Jiricek is garnering.

The Rangers and the Islanders are both struggling. The Boo Birds are out calling for Lou Lamoriello to be fired on Long Island while Rangers fans are calling on management to bring in some help, and apparently there are some big names out there being used as trade bait?

Jacob Trouba New York RangersChris Johnston: Absolutely. Chris Drury, the Rangers general manager is open for business, he's let that be known to other GMs around the league. Specifically he's mentioned Jacob Trouba and Chris Kreider as veteran Rangers players that he'd be willing to move on from under the right circumstances.

I think this coming to light in the last day or two has sent a shockwave through the Rangers dressing room. A trade of either of these players is not a straight forward transaction. Both have 15-team no-trade clauses included in their contracts so there could be a situation where the team could would have to try to work with one of those players in order to get them to be moved on from.

The mere fact that they're publicly known to be available amongst other Rangers players tells you a little bit about the situation in New York, which might surprise some people. If you look at the standings, the Rangers are holding down a playoff spot at this point but there's been a general displeasure with the displeasure with the performance of some of the veteran players on the Rangers this season. They've dropped three games in a row and management is now considering other options to try to shake things up.

It seems like they're not trying to hide the fact that they're putting [Kreider and Trouba] out there. Is this maybe a strategy to kind of get them to get them to waive their no-trade clauses?

Chris Kreider New York RangersJohnston: It could be viewed that way. I think generally when you send a memo around to all the other teams there's at least some level of expectation that it's not likely to be kept entirely confidential. 'Hockey is a small town' I like to say, Gino, so a lot of us have talked to each other and this is a pretty buzzy thing to have happen. Let's face it, as much as it creates a headline for a couple days, in terms of making actual tangible results on the ice, you've got to make a move at some point in time. It could be in part to maybe catch the attention of everyone in the short term but in the long term it's only going to be moves that change the dynamic around that team.

The Columbus Blue Jackets are playing about .500 hockey coming out of the gates and they've got a great young talent on their blueline that seems to be drawing a lot of attention from around the league.

David Jiricek Columbus Blue JacketsJohnston: That would be David Jiricek. The sixth-overall pick from 2022. He's currently playing for the Blue Jackets farm team down in Cleveland. The organization has certainly had a number of trade discussions around Jiricek in recent times. 

There is some sizable interest in him as a promising right-hand defensive prospect. But at this point in time I think Columbus is trying to sort through where the best offers are coming from. Initially they had focused on trying to get another prospect like him, sort of a kind-for-kind type of deal but I think Columbus is shifting into a mode where they'll start to listen on draft-pick packages in exchange for Jiricek and that might help move things along on the trade front.

It's a player that wants a fresh start and I think the organization is committed to giving it to him and we'll see if they can complete a deal in the near future.