Ex-Rangers Kaapo Kakko, Ryan Lindgren: ‘lot of good memories’ in MSG return
When the Seattle Kraken last visited Madison Square Garden on Dec. 8, 2024, they rallied for a 7-5 victory over the New York Rangers. Kaapo Kakko had an assist in that contest; Will Borgen logged 16+ minutes and finished plus-1.
If you remember that game at all, perhaps it’s because the Rangers flushed a 3-1 lead in the second period and lost for the seventh time in nine games, amid a spiral that largely torpedoed their playoff hopes last season.
What we didn’t know at the time was that assist was Kakko’s final point with the Rangers, who traded him to the Kraken for Borgen and a pair of draft picks just 10 days later.
On Monday, Kakko returned to MSG with the Kraken for the first time since the trade, unsure of what his emotions will be like when the puck drops later that evening.
“This is the first time something like that happens for me, so there’s no experience before, so we’ll see how it goes,” Kakko said after the morning skate. “It’s a lot of memories and it’s fun to play against these guys.”
It’s not his first game against the Rangers, though. After missing the first month of the 2025-26 season due to injury, Kakko debuted against them on Nov. 1 and had a quiet night, when the Rangers defeated the Kraken 3-2 in overtime out west at Climate Pledge Arena.
“It’s good to be back. First game back it’s going to be fun,” Kakko said. “A lot of good memories. It was a long time, six years, it’s good to be back. I played against these guys once already, but it’s a little different here.”
Kakko admitted that it was an up-and-down ride with the Rangers, who selected him No. 2 overall in the 2019 NHL Draft. He helped them reach the Eastern Conference Final twice, in 2022 and 2024, and win the Presidents’ Trophy in 2023-24. But Kakko also never had more than the 18 goals and 40 points he recorded in 2022-23. Nor did he grow out of the third-line role the Rangers kept him in.
But the 25-year-old forward sounded upbeat about his Rangers tenure Monday, despite the messy ending on Broadway.
“I think there were some good times, and times that I wasn’t that good and the team was not playing that well. I mean six years is a long time, a lot of things can happen and that’s how it went,” he explained. “I liked my time here, good memories and a good situation looking back right now.”
Kaapo Kakko, Ryan Lindgren return first time to face Rangers at The Garden
In Seattle, Kakko plays on a top-six line with Matty Beniers and gets valuable time on the power play. He had 30 points (10 goals, 20 assists) in 49 games after the trade last season; and Kakko landed a three-year, $13.58 million contract with the Kraken this past offseason. He has 14 points (four goals, 10 assists) in 27 games this season, twice sidelined by injury.
On the flip side of that trade 13 months ago, the Rangers landed steady second-pair defenseman with Borgen, and quickly signed him to a five-year, $20.5 million contract.
Overall, the Kraken (20-15-8) have more to feel good about this season. They own the first wild card in the Western Conference, and are 8-1-2 in their past 11 games. The Rangers (20-20-6) are tied for the worst points percentage (.500) in the Eastern Conference and come off an embarrassing 10-2 loss to the Boston Bruins on Saturday.
“We have to expect them to be a little pissed off,” Kraken defenseman Ryan Lindgren noted pregame.
Yes, that’s the very same Ryan Lindgren, who also makes his first visit to the Garden since the Rangers traded him to the Colorado Avalanche on March 1 last season. Lindgren played his first 387 NHL games with the Rangers, mostly on the top defense pair with good friend Adam Fox. The 27-year-old reunited with Kakko in Seattle, when he signed a four-year, $18 million free-agent deal with the Kraken over the summer.
“This is where I played my first NHL game and became the player I am today. I can’t say enough great things about that organization over there. I absolutely loved my time there,” Lindgren said Monday. “We were fortunate to have a lot of success throughout the years. Obviously, never got to our end goal, winning the Cup, but a lot of good runs.”
Expect a pair of video tributes and plenty of emotion on both sides Monday night, when Kakko and Lindgren return to MSG.
“Looking back, this is just one of the best places to play hockey,” Kakko concluded.
