Patrick Kane Watch: Rangers hold out Kravtsov and Leschyshyn for ‘roster management’
The Patrick Kane watch to the New York Rangers is officially on.
Prior to tonight’s game versus the Detroit Red Wings, the team announced that Vitali Kravtsov and Jake Leschyshyn were not available due to roster management. Ben Harpur will play on the fourth line.
Correction: He dressed as the 7th defenseman
Forever Blueshirts has been following the possibility of fitting in Kane under the cap since February 14. After the Rangers acquired Tyler Motte for Julien Gauthier, we discussed with PuckPedia to rework the scenario.
Here’s what we determined on February 19:
- Waive Jake Leschyshyn by February 25 to accrue $1.75M+ in cap space
- Trade Vitali Kravtsov to shed $875K more
- Get third party involved to drive Patrick Kane AAV to $2.625M (75%)
As you can see from the Rangers announcement, this scenario is starting to unfold.
Patrick Kane to Rangers getting closer
The rumblings are growing louder as GM Chris Drury works with the Chicago Blackhawks to get Kane on Broadway.
Kane, 34, has scored 45 points in 54 games this season. The pending UFA has a massive cap hit of $10.5 million which means a third team is needed to drive the AAV down.
On Wednesday, several major outlets are starting to report that things were heating up again.
ESPN’s Emily Kaplan stated that Kane believed there was still a chance to play for the Rangers, especially since the two sides were close to a trade. NY Post’s Larry Brooks followed up with a report that Chris Drury is exploring how to make the trade happen.
Today, Elliotte Friedman weighed in on all the buzz.
“Look, I think he wants to go to the Rangers,” Friedman said. “I’m not a genius to predict that. We all know it, and if you look at the Rangers lineup there’s room for him on the right side. The Rangers are going to have to do a little surgery in order to do this…I think they’re $75K short even if Kravtsov is included. So the Rangers might only be able to carry 20 players in the regular season. Playoffs you can do whatever.”
As far as what could go the other way to the Hawks and a third party to retain more salary, this is what we wrote Wednesday evening:
When it comes to what it would cost in assets, there’s no way the Rangers are going to give away any main piece of their roster. Prospects Vitali Kravtsov and Zac Jones are both in play, as are their first, second, and third round picks in 2023 to get this deal done. Highly-touted prospect Brennan Othmann is unlikely to be dealt according to a knowledgeable source.
The Rangers are going for it and adding Kane would be a massive swing for the fences.
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