NHL Trade Rumors: How New York Rangers Can Secure Trip to Finals

With an impressive nine-point lead for first place in the Eastern Conference over the Boston Bruins, the New York Rangers may already be favored to go all the way to the Stanley Cup Finals. If they can find a way to secure Columbus Blue Jackets forward Rick Nash, though, their case will be much stronger.

According to Larry Brooks of the New York Post, the Blueshirts are very much interested in Nash and have already begun preliminary discussions. Before a deal can be reached, there is plenty to be sorted out, though, including whether the Blue Jackets truly want to trade him, whether Nash would waive his no-movement clause to go to New York and whether the Rangers have the pieces to get him.

Brooks speculated that one possible deal would send forward Brandon Dubinsky, top forward prospect Chris Kreider and a first-round pick to Columbus for Nash. He also suggested that Derek Stepan, Ryan McDonagh, Artem Anisimov, Carl Hagelin and Michael Del Zotto could all be of interest as well.

No matter how you slice it, it looks like the Rangers have the assets to get Nash, but it will likely come down to whether they are willing to pay the hefty price. While Nash has a lot of positives attached to him such as six 30-plus-goal seasons and a 6'4", 216-lb. frame, there is also some incentive for New York to think twice.

For one, Nash has only eclipsed the 70-point mark once in his career, so his reputation may exceed his actual production. On top of that, he has a huge $7.8 million cap hit through the 2017-18 season, so dealing for Nash will take a major commitment on the Rangers' part.

New York is currently around $2.5 million under the salary cap, so the Rangers will have to move some cash around as well. Sending Dubinsky the other way gets that number closer to $6.5 million, so it shouldn't be too difficult to make room for Nash.

The Rangers certainly have a very skilled group of forwards, including Brad Richards, Marian Gaborik and Ryan Callahan, but it lacks depth. It also lacks a big, strong forward who can score, and that is precisely what Nash brings to the table.

With Nash in the fold, the Rangers would have two bona fide snipers between him and Gaborik, as well as a world-class set-up man in Richards. When you add to that a couple shut-down defensemen in Dan Girardi and Marc Staal, and perhaps the best goalie in the world in Henrik Lundqvist, you have a force to be reckoned with.

New York is far ahead of the field in the Eastern Conference currently, so it obviously wouldn't be a stretch to suggest it can make the finals as it is constructed now. At the same time, though, the Rangers may not have the secondary scoring they need when push comes to shove.

With Nash in the mix, it will give the Rangers two fantastic scoring lines as well as a strong, two-way third line. Almost all of the components are already in place, but there is something missing, and Nash seems to fit the bill. If New York takes a leap of faith and rolls the dice on Nash, then a finals trip is right around the corner.