Rangers Roundup: Revisiting the Ryan McDonagh trade, Gerard Gallant wants a Stanley Cup, and more

ryan McDonagh trade
Sep 28, 2020; Edmonton, Alberta, CAN; Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Ryan McDonagh (27) hoists the Stanley Cup after the Lightning defeat the Dallas Stars in game six of the 2020 Stanley Cup Final at Rogers Place. Mandatory Credit: Perry Nelson-USA TODAY Sports

The Tampa Bay Lightning defeated the NY Islanders by a 1-0 score in Game 7. That gives them the right to face the Montreal Canadiens in the Stanley Cup Final. One of their key performers last night was former Ranger, Ryan McDonagh.

Revisiting the Ryan McDonagh trade

On February 26th, 2018 the Rangers traded captain Ryan McDonagh and JT Miller to the Tampa Bay Lightning. In exchange they received Libor Hajek, Brett Howden, Vladislav Nemestnikov, 2018 1st round pick (Nils Lundkvist), conditional second round pick (Karl Henriksson).

Namestnikov was then flipped to Ottawa for Nick Ebert, a 4th round pick in this upcoming draft.

There is no doubt that at this time, the Lightning have clearly won this trade as they are four wins from back-to-back Cups. Of course, there is still plenty of time for the Blueshirts to even this one out thanks to Nils Lundkvist and possibly Karl Henriksson.

Gerard Gallant wants to win a Stanley Cup

gerard gallant
Brad Rempel-USA TODAY Sports

Gerard Gallant was a star player in the NHL with the Detroit Red Wings prior to becoming a head coach. He’s been successful in all three NHL stops which includes the Columbus Blue Jackets, Florida Panthers, and Vegas Golden Knights. The 57 year-old coach has a record of 270-216-4-51 for a .550 points percentage.

He was brought in to win, and to make the playoffs. Which is something that Chris Drury has been asked to do from owner James Dolan. In a wide-ranging interview conducted by Steve Serby in the NY Post, he reinforced their mission with one of his own.

“Well, I want to win a Stanley Cup,” Gallant said. “I never won a Stanley Cup. I enjoy the game, I still have a lot of fun coming to the rink, and I got two grandboys, 4 and 5 years old, and they’re pretty happy to see grandpa coaching an NHL hockey team.”

Check out Steve Serby’s full interview here.

NHL Rumors

The Jack Eichel saga, is likely to drag on up until the NHL Draft. However, those intensified trade talks may die down for now. According to TSN’s Darren Dreger he feels that Sabres GM Kevyn Adams has had all his conversations and understands the framework for a deal.

Enter now the Golden Knights.

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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