Drury Makes His Move

So much for not making a splash. Less than 24 hours after I confidently predicted Chris Drury would not make any huge moves going into the trade deadline, he reeled in one of the biggest fishes in the pond. Vladimir Tarasenko is now a New York Ranger, along with Niko Mikkola. The former is a member of the 2019 Stanley Cup champion St. Louis Blues, a six-time 30 goal scorer and a UFA at the end of the season; the latter, also a UFA, is a 6' 4", 209 pound left-handed defenseman who, based on what we saw in the game against the Vancouver Canucks Wednesday night, is Ben Harpur's replacement on the third pairing.

But while Drury may have gone Christmas shopping a bit early - the trade deadline is March 3 - he didn't overpay. To get Tarasenko and Mikkola, the Rangers gave up one of their two first-round draft picks (the lower of the two); a fourth-round draft pick; prospect Hunter Skinner; and Sammy Blais. Drury even got St. Louis GM Doug Armstrong to retain 50 percent of Tarasenko's $7.5 million cap hit. The next time I go shopping for a car, I'm taking this man with me.

Skinner is a prospect the same way I'm a participant in the triathlon. As for Blais, he never fully recovered from his torn ACL, and his $1.5 million cap hit was a luxury the team could no longer afford to carry. Not one single top-tier prospect or current roster player was even on the table. To put this trade in perspective, when the Rangers traded for Andrew Copp last season, Drury gave up two second-round picks, one of which became a first-rounder when the Rangers advanced to the Eastern Conference finals, a fifth-round pick in 2023, and a real prospect in Morgan Barron. So far this season, Barron has 5 goals and 12 points for the Winnipeg Jets, while Skinner has 3 goals and 8 points for Jacksonville of the East Coast League, the A Ball of professional hockey.

And here's the thing: Drury's cart may not be filled yet. That's because on the same day the Rangers consummated their deal with the Blues they put Libor Hajek on waivers. Yes, the last vestiges of that infamous Ryan McDonagh / J.T. Miller trade will soon be gone, along with his corresponding $800k cap hit. Meaning, Drury will have roughly $1.2 million left in the kitty to fortify his fourth line. Like I said, the man is a chess player.

Here's what the Rangers' postseason line-up could look like:

Panarin - Zibanejad - Tarasenko

Lafreniere - Chytil - Kakko

Kreider - Trocheck - Kravtsov

Goodrow - Bjugstad - Vesey

Lindgren - Fox

Miller - Trouba

Mikkola - Schneider

Shesterkin

How's that for a playoff roster? Not bad. In fact, it's a better and deeper roster than the one that came within two games of dethroning the Tampa Bay Lightning last season. Last year, Goodrow was hobbled by a broken ankle and Ryan Reaves was the right wing on the fourth line. Assuming Drury can land Nick Bjugstad, or someone with a comparable skillset, Gerard Gallant will have four lines at his disposal, all capable of putting the puck in the net. Just try checking this team.

There's just one tiny caveat. Tarasenko isn't exactly having a banner year. In 38 games this season, he has a paltry 10 goals and 29 points. Last season, he registered 34 goals and 82 points in 75 games. Over the last three seasons, he's battled the injury bug. If he's fully healthy and motivated, the Rangers may have pulled off the heist of the year; if he isn't, all bets are off.

We'll know soon enough. Tarasenko makes his debut tonight at the Garden against the Seattle Kraken. To quote the late, great Stevie Ray Vaughan: "The house will be rockin'."