Rangers linked to Canadiens in latest Trocheck trade rumors: what it means
Silly season in the NHL is almost upon us. So, expect those New York Rangers trade rumors to go into over-drive soon enough as the summer days approach.
However, be aware that in the mix of the crazy, click-bait headlines and unsubstantiated rumors, there’s legitimate reporting taking place. And such is the case with Bruce Garrioch’s latest piece in the Ottawa Citizen linking the Rangers and Montreal Canadiens in a possible Vincent Trocheck swap this offseason.
And per the respected NHL journalist, the Canadiens’ interest in Trocheck dates back to the March 6 NHL Trade Deadline. In the midst of serious trade talks about their veteran center, the Rangers reportedly were close to a deal with the Canadiens but couldn’t get it over the finish line. Whether that’s true, we don’t know for sure. We do know that general manager Chris Drury opted not to move Trocheck before the deadline, stating that the offers he received weren’t good enough to part with such a valuable asset.
Per Garrioch:
There was a lot of speculation around the March 7 deadline that the Habs were trying to acquire Matthew Knies from the Toronto Maple Leafs, but it’s not believed that’s the deal which fell through.
The talk in league circles is that [Montreal GM Kent Hughes] and Jeff Gorton, the Habs’ vice-president of hockey operations, may have been in talks with the New York Rangers for a trade that would have included centre Vincent Trocheck in return.
This past season, Trocheck had a 12-team no-trade clause in his contract, which runs for three more years with an affordable $5.625 million salary cap hit. That becomes 10 teams on July 1. That’s important because Trocheck already publicly stated he doesn’t want to move his family out west. But there are hockey people that Forever Blueshirts spoke with who question whether he wants to move to Canada.
Again, there’s a finite number of teams he can block a trade to, though Trocheck could make it difficult if there’s a proposed trade to a destination he doesn’t prefer that’s outside his 10-team list, too.
Why latest report is more serious than silly for Rangers, Canadiens
The past is the past. And that holds true whether the Rangers and Canadiens were close to a Trocheck trade on March 6 or not.
But moving forward, there’d appear to be some momentum for the two sides to pursue this deal again.
“It depends on the other team,” Hughes told reporters Monday. “That doesn’t stop us from making the appeal and revisiting it.
“I’m going to call all 31 teams and look into a lot of things. As I discussed earlier, what will be available in June isn’t necessarily the same as what was available in March. It will be up to me to determine that.”
The Canadiens sorely lacked a trusted No. 2 center throughout the Stanley Cup Playoffs, especially in their five-game loss to the Carolina Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference Final. This is a dynamic young team, and Trocheck is just the type player to help them take another step forward. He’s a battle-tested 33-year-old with excellent leadership skills, who is a two-way force, excellent in the face-off circle, and still capable of scoring 20+ goals with 60+ points.
Oh, and we did mention his affordable contract already.
The Rangers seek to get younger, faster, and more skilled in their retool. The Canadiens have plenty of exciting prospects and young NHL players. So, how about center prospect Michael Hage as the key return here? Is Montreal ready to move on from injury-prone defenseman prospect David Reinbacher? If so, do the Rangers have interest in the 21-year-old right-shot former first-round pick?
Let’s take this a step further. If the Rangers are willing to take on forward Brendan Gallagher and the final year of his $6.5 million AAV contract after his emotional goodbye to the Canadiens earlier this week, how big a return package of prospects, picks, and/or young NHLers could the Blueshirts come away with?
Sure, Gallagher scored only seven goals this season and was a healthy scratch in the postseason, but if it means landing more or better young talent, well, that’s called weaponizing your salary-cap space, of which the Rangers have roughly $26.6 million, per PuckPedia.
But we’re getting ahead of ourselves. Let’s start with that Trocheck makes a lot of sense for the Canadiens, should the Rangers plan to move him as expected this summer.
Nothing silly about that.
