The trade deadline feels like it is rapidly
approaching and the Rangers are in a playoff spot with teams not that far ahead
and a number close behind, so decisions must be made as to what the Rangers
should do. Around the league many teams
are getting a jump on the action making moves early to get more time with their
newly acquired players. With the way the
trade deadline is looking I cannot help but think of the stock market and how
overvalued the commodities that are on the market seem.
In the stock market the goal is always to buy low and
sell high. With that philosophy in mind
we can put an end to the ideas that Michael Del Zotto, Marian Gaborik or even
Evgeny Grachev get moved at the deadline because you will be selling at a
depreciated price. The other issue right
now as the initial moves are being made is what is the valuation of the assets
being dealt and with each deal so far it seems that the acquiring team is
overpaying on the face value of the player they are getting. Good players have been traded, and I do not
mean to knock them, but the prices that the selling teams are getting for some
of these guys is ludicrous for the level of talent they are getting. Chris Kelly, for example, is a third line
center on a good team and that with a year left on his contract is not worth a
second round draft pick, but that is what the market is pricing at right now.
So the question is simple: Do the Rangers buy, sell or hold at the
deadline?
The problem with simple questions however, is that the
answers are not always as simple. The
Rangers truly have the feel of an organization that is stuck in the middle of
multiple tracks with no clear vision of what they want out of the season. There is a part of the organization that
seems to look at this season as purely a building and development year in which
they really see what they have in the young talent and getting those guys
experience at this level. If that part
is the one that wins out as most important between now and deadline day the
Rangers will either hold with what they have and possibly tinker in small moves
and or sell some pieces (Gilroy, Eminger, Christensen) if they can get anything
for them.
Another part of the organization will always look to
make the playoffs whether they can actually win once they get there or
not. To be fair, hockey is a business,
so looking at the extra revenue of a playoff series is certainly well within
the rights of ownership and management. Along
with that making the playoffs would certainly be vital experience for many of
the Rangers young players as it would help prepare them for the playoff
intensity when the team is better equipped to be a legitimate contender. If those factors win out then you will likely
see the Rangers be buyers at the deadline, though even then the extent to which
they move is unclear.
The biggest move I could see the Rangers making is the
rumored move for Kaberle. I understand
the team and fan fascination with the idea of Kaberle because of how pitiful
the power play has looked for long stretches.
There is clearly a need, an almost dire need for a quarterback to run
the show, but I do not see it as a difference maker of a move. While Kaberle will make the team better, he
does not make them a contender and with the price that Kaberle is going to
command in this current market, it is not worth it.
Last season the Rangers were in a similar position to
where they currently find themselves and general manager Glen Sather made some
tinkering moves, but nothing that sacrificed the future. The move for Jokinen, while having the
potential to be a buyer’s move, was mainly about eliminating Kotalik’s contract
and moving Higgins along. It fits the
mold of the Rozsival-Wolski trade that he made earlier this season as
well. Based on what Sather
said earlier this week I look for this type of approach this season. The team is not looking to take on salary or
sacrifice important pieces just to make a run this year.
There is nothing wrong with the fact that general fan
inclination is always on the buy side so that their team can win now. Plenty of fans also see the benefits of
holding onto what the team has and continuing to build for the future. Obviously the next six games will have a lot
to do with what the final decision is, but I look for Sather to only make a
move that has the net effect of the Jokinen or Wolski moves and that is the
right course of action for the team. Sather
has been very good at protecting his prospects from trades, though not as much
his picks and hopefully that will continue.
For me, I would go with a hold/sell approach in
keeping all your future assets and making those moves to look to see if you can
get anything of value for disposable pieces like Gilroy. If I was to look into the buying side, I
would look at, depending on price, a faceoff man and a depth defenseman to sure
up the last pairing.
