Here's what the Rangers should do at the trade deadline.
March 8th is a day circled on everyone’s calendar.
The day of the NHL trade deadline brings chaotic excitement, but this year, it also creates a sense of pressure.
As Stan Fishler points out, New York Rangers’ general manager Chris Drury is under pressure to improve the team while simultaneously not trading his 2024 first-round pick. (I’ll let the maven explain that in only a way he can)
But what if I told you that Drury shouldn’t make a splash by this deadline?
What if I said that the pieces on the market are not worth the premiums he would have to pay and that a minor upgrade would be wiser than a major overpayment?
The last two Rangers’ games, both victories against excellent teams in the Colorado Avalanche and Tampa Bay Lightning, prove that the Blueshirts are not in need of drastic changes.
Instead, the changes need to come from within.
Jonathan Quick has proven how good the Rangers can be with the level of goaltending they expected from Igor Shesterkin. The defense has shown up, holding both opponents to one goal in their two games since the All-Star break.
With all the focus on improving the third-line center and getting a top-line wing, the Rangers have overlooked the possibility of Jonny Brodzinski continuing to fill that role. He brings speed and versatility to the lineup, playing well with Will Cuylle and Kaapo Kakko on the third line.
The wise move is not to overspend on pieces in an inflated market but to prioritize the style of play that has made you successful this season.
The Rangers are 15-0-0 at home this season when allowing three or fewer goals. Overall, they are 30-2-1 when allowing three goals or fewer. Yes, you read that right. That is the key to success: going out and spending wisely.
Brodzinski is more than capable of filling the third center role for the Rangers. Upgrading from him will keep the fact that the recipe the Blueshirts must follow is strong team defense and great goaltending.
No one on this market can come into the lineup and change the narrative around the Rangers, allowing them to score at will and dominate at 5-on-5.
That is not going to happen.
What can happen, and what has happened for 30 victories this season, is goaltending and defense winning the games. Shesterkin needs to bounce back. That is a bigger priority than any deadline acquisition.
The defense needs to remain structured. That is more important than overpaying for a center, especially when Brodzinski is more than capable of holding down the fort for the remainder of the season.
Now, I want to be precise. I am not saying the Rangers should sit on their hands at the deadline. They should not feel pressured into overpaying for assets. Adam Henrique and Frank Vatrano would be upgrades at center and wing for the Blueshirts.
But are they upgrades worthy of the price tag this market has set? Especially now that we know the answer to the Rangers' struggles isn’t going to be found in a trade but found from within?
Brodzinski’s three goals and nine assists in 32 games won’t blow you away. They don’t need to, though. He has done his job, and if a deal that makes sense is not out there, he should continue to get the opportunity.
He has won 55.4% of his face-offs and 52.3 CF%, per Hockey Reference. No, he is not Filip Chytil, but there is no need to spend a first or trade a player like Kakko when he is perfectly serviceable.
Three years ago, the Rangers added Vatrano as a fourth-round pick. That was a trade that made sense. They didn’t hemorrhage their future nor trade any high-end players. Fast forward to 2024, and the consensus is that they will try to reacquire that same player in a package deal for quite an extravagant haul.
It simply does not make sense. As trading a fourth-round pick for Vatrano exemplified, it is not the flashiest piece that makes the perfect fit. Fit should always be the priority, and fit requires the right price.
For the Rangers to go on a run, their team defense must replicate these last two games. They need both Shesterkin and Quick to be elite and their stars to be stars. The other pieces are all about fit and buying into the style.
Brodzinski does just that, and with him being fully serviceable as a third-line center, the Rangers should not be overpaying this trade deadline.