New York Rangers Rumors: Rod Brind’Amour and Jack Eichel

rod brind'amour rangers
May 27, 2021; Nashville, Tennessee, USA; Carolina Hurricanes head coach Rod Brind'Amour looks on from the bench during the third period against the Nashville Predators in game six of the first round of the 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Bridgestone Arena. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports

The biggest rumors surrounding the New York Rangers right now focuses on their search for a new coach. What is taking so long and why have we only heard of two names being interviewed? It can’t be possible that Chris Drury only talked with Rick Tocchet and Gerard Gallant.

Pierre LeBrun reported that Gallant’s interview went well and Darren Dreger said he’d be “gobsmacked if Gallant didn’t end up in New York” – so what’s the delay?

Is there a chance Rod Brind’Amour could coach the Rangers?

I am on record saying that pursuing Rod Brind’Amour would be a red herring for Chris Drury. Almost everyone around the league believes he and the Carolina Hurricanes will work this out. The hold up everyone feels is Brind’Amour trying to make sure his assistant coaches are taken care of.

“I understand that one of the biggest issues is that Brind’Amour has asked that as much as he wants himself to get a contract extension, he also wants extensions for his coaching staff, the training staff and the equipment staff, which also are not signed for next year,” Elliotte Friedman said in early May. “And he said as much as a priority as his contract is, that is also an enormous priority for [Brind’Amour]. So what he is telling the organization is that he wants a situation where they are taken care of as well.”

Then yesterday a report surfaced that one of his assistants was granted permission to speak with other teams. Friedman also relayed on his latest 31 Thoughts Podcast he received a cryptic text with regards to Brind’Amour’s situation that read in essence, “Buckle your seatbelts.”

https://twitter.com/FriedgeHNIC/status/1403457265051619336?s=20

So is this really a possibility? It simply can’t be ruled out or dismissed in light of this latest information.

The Jack Eichel situation

This one has been dragging on and on. I admittedly have given too much digital ink to the topic as many of you have let me know. However, it really is hard to ignore such a huge story especially when the New York Rangers are almost always brought up in the same breath as Jack Eichel’s.

jack eichel rangers
Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports

Prior to Eichel’s neck issues, I know for a fact that the Rangers were extremely interested in trading for the 24 year-old pivot. Elliotte Friedman even revealed not too long ago that they made an offer for him prior to the start of the season, probably before the Sabres paid out his $7 million bonus. Buffalo balked, but as their season fell further down the abyss, they started to try and re-engage with teams to build up a trade market.

As of right now, the Rangers position on Eichel has cooled but I believe they are still interested in a deal that makes sense. Let me be clear, this is now my thought on what’s happening now – the Rangers have likely told Buffalo go out and see what you can get for him. Drury has also told them we have other cheaper options we could pursue like Evgeny Kuznetsov or possibly Sean Monahan.

It’s a poker game, and I believe Drury called out Kevyn Adams bluff.

If you want all the latest on the Rangers pursuit of Eichel including links to key reports of the situation please read the article below.

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Anthony Scultore is the founder of Forever Blueshirts and has been covering the New York Rangers and the NHL... More about Anthony Scultore

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