There has been much conjecture that the Rangers might want to add to their center depth coming into the playoffs, given that Filip Chytil (concussion) is out for the season and on LTIR. They seem to be trying to accomplish that, as the squad has expressed interest in Kraken middleman Alexander Wennberg, according to a story earlier this week from Larry Brooks of the New York Post.
The 29-year-old’s contract, which has an AAV of $4.5 million, is in its third and final season. He would suit New York’s plans as a short-term addition while preserving their cap space available if Chytil can make a full recovery the following season, given that he will be an unrestricted free agent in the summer.
In 56 games this season, Wennberg has tallied eight goals and fourteen assists, which is marginally less than his output in his first two seasons with Seattle. Wennberg is seen more as a two-way secondary option than as a genuine offensive danger. He frequently plays in their elite penalty kill group, which might strengthen the already potent Ranger penalty kill, which is sixth in the league going into Friday night’s games.
Naturally, it’s important to keep in mind that the market for rental centers has shrunk significantly since Elias Lindholm and Sean Monahan’s moves, so there will likely be more teams hunting for centers than there are available ones in this situation. This implies that if Seattle decides to sell closer to the trade deadline, Wennberg’s fees might be somewhat high; after all, they’re only three points out of the final Wild Card, so there’s no assurance GM Ron Francis will unload their rentals.
According to CapFriendly, the Rangers currently have just less than $4.4M in full-season LTIR space. Although they could increase it slightly by sending a player down, which would then provide enough room for Wennberg, it makes sense that New York, or any other interested team, would want to keep the Kraken’s share of the deal up to the maximum of 50%. Naturally, Seattle should only raise its asking price as a result.
With just two weeks left until the trade deadline, teams still have some time to determine their course of action from both the buyer and seller perspectives. It’s safe to say that Wennberg, along with a number of Seattle’s other expiring veterans, like Jordan Eberle, Tomas Tatar, and Justin Schultz, will be on the radar of the Rangers and a number of other teams. That already thin middle market will get even thinner if they don’t sell.
