The New York Rangers have limited capital to find a third-line center. Adam Henrique may be on the top of that list due to his defensive responsibility and production compared to the market.
Pinch yourself. The New York Rangers 2012 Eastern Conference Final appearance was 12 years ago.
The club is in a position to add a center due to Filip Chytil's season-ending injury and could add the player who notoriously ended that playoff run. It was one of the team's four most recent deep playoff tournaments.
Adding the Anaheim Ducks center may help the team succeed more than the 2012, 2014, 2015, and 2022 Ranger teams.
Henrique has skated in 906 NHL contests (regular season and playoffs), recording 524 points (259 goals, 265 assists). The 33-year-old center currently earns $5.825 and is a UFA this summer. It is the second-highest total of any Ducks forward.
The Branford, Ontario native has a modified 10-team no-trade list, meaning the Rangers have to be on that list for the team to begin negotiations.
Henrique can add veteran experience to the Ranger's middle lane depth chart. He is still productive, which makes him more enticing than other options in the center market.
The Duck's hot trade target has 32 points (15 goals, 17 assists) in 38 games this season. He also has eight points in his last five games played.
Tyler Johnson is a candidate, but has been on the IR since Jan. 2 and has recorded nine goals this season.
The seasoned skater still has a second power-play unit role with Anaheim as a penalty killer. He wins 53.4% of his draws and skates an average 17:14 TOI.
He is a postulant who can be trusted to play defense on and off the puck, and after losing faceoffs on his end.
Backchecking F1's failing to stop rush plays against and defense after losing draws have been issues for the Rangers this season.
Those details make Henrique a headline target for the club ahead of the March 8 trade deadline.
One area of concern may be playoff experience. Henrique has played in one post-season tournament later than the first round in 2012.
The only other time he competed for the Stanley Cup was in 2018 when he played in four contests and did not record a point.