The New York Rangers are in the midst of a self-proclaimed "retooling", which could evidently benefit the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Chris Johnston of The Athletic revealed on Wednesday that Rangers forward Artemi Panarin is being held out of the lineup until a trade is completed, or at least until the Olympic break:
Less than 24 hours later, ESPN and NHL Network insider Kevin Weekes revealed a list of teams that have shown interest in the 34-year-old winger. Among those teams was the Lightning.
While a lot of teams have shown interest, the teams that Panarin is willing to go to will likely be a smaller list. The veteran forward is in the final year of a seven-year contract with the Rangers which carries an average annual value of roughly $11.6 million.
In order to fit Panarin under the salary cap, the Lightning would have to clear up quite a bit of cap space, even if the Rangers are willing to retain salary until the end of the season.
This season, Panarin has played in 52 games for the Rangers. During that time, he has scored 19 goals and tallied a total of 57 points.
Panarin would certainly help add some additional fire-power to the Lightning's top-six, but it would come at a high cost, both financially and in terms of trade assets.