Rangers Dangling Lafreniere Ahead of NHL Trade Deadline

As per David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period, the New York Rangers are surprisingly making forward Alexis Lafreniere available in the right trade just days ahead of the 2022 NHL Trade Deadline. Saying it would take a huge offer from another team, the Rangers are trying to make a splash and add a player with term that will help them both short and long-term.

Related: Rangers Rumored to Be Interested in Phil Kessel

Patrick Kane has told #Blackhawks teammates he doesn't want to move right now; #NYR are willing to trade Alexis Lafreniere in a big move; and #Preds, #TexasHockey & #GoJetsGo are active.@irfgaffar & I offer updates in today's Trade Deadline segment, presented by @betwaycanada pic.twitter.com/3b8RDRi9Dm

— David Pagnotta (@TheFourthPeriod) March 19, 2022

Pagnotta said there are some interesting discussions coming out of New York and one such conversation about Lafreniere isn’t bound to make many Rangers’ fans happy. The young forward has 13 goals and 19 points in 59 games this season and he hasn’t made the impact the Rangers might have hoped in his first two seasons. That said, the ceiling for the winger is extremely high and he has been considered one of the pieces the team would like to build around. That he might be someone GM Chris Drury is willing to part with seems surprising.

That said, Pagnotta says the Rangers are being quite specific in the return they want. “It is going to take a significant deal for this to happen,” says the reporter. The return has to be a top-flight talent who has term left on his deal and a reasonable cap hit. They want someone relatively young that they can keep in the fold as they try to manage their cap situation.

In a few years the salary cap is going to be an issue for the Rangers and the team is looking at trying to manage things right away.

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