Top-5 potential trade targets for Rangers, including Jason Robertson
The New York Rangers need this latest roster retool to be quicker than the last.
It took four years, all told, from the Jeff Gorton/Glen Sather Letter 1.0 to the Rangers’ surprise Eastern Conference Final run in 2021-22. Plus, New York technically made the playoffs in 2019-20, even if it was, of course, as the No. 10 seed in the 24-team bubble playoffs.
But now there’s a superstar coach in place with Mike Sullivan, and likely little Rangers appetite for a full-on lengthy rebuild. So, they must aim high when retooling their roster, and seek players that can help them immediately at the NHL level, and not rely solely on return packages loaded with draft picks.
Here are five candidates New York should target as it continues its retooling.
5. Shane Wright, C, Seattle Kraken
- Age: 22
- Contract status: Signed for $886,666 AAV through 2026-27, then will be an RFA
- 2025-26 stats: 7 goals, 18 points in 52 games
- Why the Rangers want him: The 2022 NHL Draft was supposed to be the Shane Wright draft, but things went sideways for the young, extremely skilled yet under-performing center. Still, Wright is only 22 and had 44 points in 79 games in his first full season in 2024-25. Plus, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reported Wright is on the block, which could make him part of a package either for Vincent Trocheck or a “change of scenery” swap for Alexis Lafreniere.
4. Samuel Girard, D, Colorado Avalanche
- Age: 27
- Contract status: Signed for $5 million AAV through 2026-27, then will be a UFA
- 2025-26 stats: 3 goals, 11 points in 35 games
- Why the Rangers want him: Girard is an affordable left-shot defenseman who could play on their second pairing alongside Will Borgen. With the Avalanche likely to load up ahead of the deadline, they are among the teams likely in on Artemi Panarin. But you can be sure Rangers president/general manager Chris Drury wants a haul from his former team before he trades Panarin there, and Girard could be a good starting point.
3. William Eklund, LW, San Jose Sharks
- Age: 23
- Contract status: Signed for $5.6 million AAV through 2028-29, then will be an RFA
- 2025-26 stats: 11 goals, 32 points in 47 games
- Why the Rangers want him: If the Sharks really are in on Panarin and/or Braden Schneider, the Rangers must target Eklund, the No. 7 overall pick in the 2021 NHL Draft, in return. He’s exactly what the Rangers need more of: a skilled top-six forward, who had 58 points last season yet with plenty of room to grow, and is under contract for three more years at a very affordable rate.
2. Pavel Dorofeyev, LW, Vegas Golden Knights
- Age: 25
- Contract status: Signed through this season, then will be an RFA with arbitration rights
- 2025-26 stats: 24 goals, 40 points in 52 games
- Why the Rangers want him: Think a younger, more shoot-first version of Panarin. With the Rangers throwing in the towel, and the Golden Knights seemingly in on every star-caliber player in their goal of getting back to the Stanley Cup Final for the first time since 2023, Drury could target the sniper as the headliner in a potential Panarin-to-Vegas deal. That is, of course, if the Golden Knights have enough salary cap space to fit Panarin in. Dorofeyev, a 2019 third-round pick, scored 35 goals last season and would bring youth, power-play prowess, and high-end skill to New York, to be part of the long-term answer. Think the Derick Brassard-for-Mika Zibanejad trade of a decade ago.
1. Jason Robertson, LW, Dallas Stars
- Age: 26
- Contract status: Signed through this season, then will be an RFA with arbitration rights; eligible to be UFA in 2027
- 2025-26 stats: 30 goals, 62 points in 53 games
- Why the Rangers want him: Because who wouldn’t want Jason Robertson? Truth be told, this feels like more of an offseason deal — since the Stars are likely to make one last kick at the Cup before possibly breaking up their band. Robertson is the absolute perfect replacement for Panarin with the Rangers: a young and ultra-skilled wing, who’s already posted his fourth 30-goal season with about 1/3 of this one left, and has a pair of 40-goal campaigns on his resume too. But if the Stars, who traded for Mikko Rantanen a year ago, go all in and trade for Panarin, Robertson could be the prize acquisition, since Dallas likely cannot re-sign the California-born sniper.
