Rangers Had a Trade in Place for Nikishin; Does His New Deal Help or Hurt Them?

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Elliotte Friedman on the most recent episode of the 32 Thoughts podcast that the New York Rangers were extremely close on a trade that would have seen them land Carolina Hurricanes defenseman Alexander Nikishin. He said there was almost a trade this summer between the Rangers and the Hurricanes that would have sent him there. The return was speculated to be a couple of first-rounders. “But they couldn’t work out a contract, so it never happened.”

The Hurricanes were pretty upset because the deal had been verbally agreed to, dependent on a contract extension. The restricted free agent defenceman reportedly wanted a five-year deal worth around $9 – $9.5 million per season. The Rangers might have offered in the eights, but that has been disputed.

Will The Rangers Revisit Acquiring Nikishin?

It will be intriguing to see if the Rangers revisit this at all. Nikishin might have a better understanding of his value around the league. He misplayed his hand this summer, and it wound up costing him time before he settled on a deal. “They hire agents to tell them what to do. Sometimes it’s good advice. Sometimes, not so good advice. At the end of the day, it doesn’t affect us when we get guys in the locker room, and we’re all together, and those guys are out of it,” said Hurricanes head coach Rob Brind’Amour.

Nikishin changed agents, likely because of that bad advice.

For now, Carolina just closed the book on the Nikishin saga. They’ve signed him to a one-year, $3 million deal after he skipped camp and demanded a trade all summer. GM Eric Tulsky barely blinked and welcomed him back. That doesn’t mean there won’t be trade talks down the line. As per PuckPedia, after being a 10.2.c free agent with no rights or offer sheet eligibility, after this one-year deal (assuming he plays 10 games), he’ll be both offer sheet and arbitration eligible.

That could create more urgency and a different incentive to get something longer-term done, or to work out a deal with another team.

“I can’t claim to tell you what was in the player’s head…” said Tulsky. But, as time was winding down, so were Nikishin’s opportunities to play this season. “So we got to a time where there was an agreement to be made and we got it done.”

“This has been a long process, but we look forward to him re-entering our locker room ready to contribute with the Hurricanes, as he did during a Stanley Cup championship season last year,” added Tulsky. That may be true. However, if a trade is on the table and a team like the Rangers shows interest, expect Tulsky to listen.

Next: The Maple Leafs’ Could Have Been Disastrous Trade Mistake