The Tragedy Of Kaapo Kakko On Broadway: A Tale Of Hope And Disappointment

With Kaapo Kakko finding himself in trade rumors once again, here's an overview of his tenure with the Rangers thus far.

Kaapo Kakko’s time with the New York Rangers could be coming to an end sooner rather than later.

The young forward has been the subject of multiple trade rumors and Peter Laviolette’s decision to scratch him out of the lineup on Sunday night, seemed like the last straw for Kakko, in what has been a tragic tenure in The Big Apple.

The Rangers selected Kakko with the second overall pick in the 2019 NHL Draft as the organization had hoped he could become one of the pillars of the franchise one day.

Through his first three seasons in the NHL Kakko struggled and really showed little signs of the player that the Rangers had hoped he would ultimately blossom into.

After failing to record over 25 points in a season over his first three years, Kakko finally showed flashes of his potential during the 2022-23 campaign when he tallied 18 goals, 22 assists and 40 points in 82 games.

However, he regressed the following season to the point where Laviolette even scratched him in a playoff game.

As Kakko became a restricted free agent, all signs pointed toward the Rangers parting ways with the player they once considered to be franchise-altering.

Despite finding his name in numerous trade rumors, the Rangers signed Kakko to a one-year, $2.4 million contract, essentially his last chance to prove himself in New York.

To start the season, the 23-year-old was playing some of the best hockey of his career. He found a groove on a line with Filip Chytil and Will Cuylle.

Once the Rangers began to falter, so did Kakko’s game. Suddenly, the confident forward that we saw glimpses of, was just not there anymore.

First Laviolette stripped Kakko of his role on the second power play unit and followed that up by benching him altogether.

It was strange that Laviolette pinpointed Kakko to scratch since he is far from the team’s biggest problem.

Once again, Kakko was used as a punching bag of sorts, something he is unfortunately used to.

He’s played under three different coaches through his short NHL career while the team transitioned quickly from a rebuilding team to a serious playoff contender, which hurt Kakko’s overall development.

Yes, Kakko deserves blame for his shortcomings, but he was not dealt a fair deck of cards and has had this unfair weight on his shoulders since coming to New York.

There is still time to rewrite the script of Kakko on Broadway. That time is running out very quickly though and don’t be surprised if he’s dealt before season’s end.