The New York Rangers have fully embraced the retool. General manager Chris Drury made his first big move of the new era, dealing winger Artemi Panarin to the Los Angeles Kings just hours before Wednesday's NHL roster freeze. While the Rangers aren't tearing it down, they are looking for a different mix after such a disappointing season. The Panarin deal was the key point of business that needed to get done, but it would be foolish to think the moves are over now.
The Rangers kicked off the first big trade of Drury's "retool" with the acquisition of Windsor Spitfires winger Liam Greentree in exchange for Artemi Panarin. It's hard to like this return, though it wasn't a surprise as I had called out in my recent piece criticizing Chris Drury that Panarin's NMC put major limitations on the return. But we move on, and we look to make the best of it.
The deal was a homerun for the Isles as they landed several key pieces to aid their retool. That trade, it seems, was so shrewd that it will now serve as a comp for another potential blockbuster trade this season. Insider Elliotte Friedman discussed during the January 24 edition of Saturday Headlines that the Islanders' crosstown rivals, the New York Rangers, could be using Nelson's trade as the model for the impending trade of Artemi Panarin.
The Rangers retool is official. Chris Drury and the Rangers announced- essentially copying and pasting the 2017 letter from Jeff Gorton -that they will be retooling this roster around the current core players and prospects. This comes just five games after the Rangers appeared to be turning a corner with a big win in the Winter Classic. But in those five games, the Rangers have been outscored 30-12 including four straight embarrassing showings.