Offseason Trade Landing Spots for New York Rangers Forward Chris Kreider
It's been a difficult season for the New York Rangers. Coming off last season's Presidents' Trophy-winning performance, they're now jockeying for one of the final Eastern Conference wild-card berths.
General manager Chris Drury was busy in this season's trade market. His notable moves included trading Jacob Trouba to Anaheim, sending Kaapo Kakko to Seattle for Will Borgen, acquiring J.T. Miller and Carson Soucy from Vancouver, sending Reilly Smith back to Las Vegas, and shipping Ryan Lindgren to Colorado.
The trade deadline has since passed, but Drury could be planning more moves in the offseason to shake up his roster for a quick turnaround in 2025-26.
On March 11, Ryan Baugh of The Athletic indicated the Rangers have less than $11 million in salary-cap space for next season, with restricted free agents K'Andre Miller and Will Cuylle to re-sign. He believes Drury must shed some salary if he intends to take a big swing at a major acquisition.
Baugh suggested Chris Kreider as the obvious trade candidate. The winger is signed through 2026-27 with an average annual value of $6.5 million and a 15-team no-trade clause. He frequently surfaced in this season's rumor mill.
Sitting third all-time among Rangers goal scorers (322) and 10th in points with 574, the 33-year-old has reached or exceeded the 20-goal plateau nine times, including a career-high 52 goals in 2021-22. However, injuries this season limited him to 18 goals in 55 games.
Kreider's struggles this season could hurt his value in this summer's trade market. Nevertheless, a team with plentiful cap space could be interested in adding his experience, leadership and scoring ability to their roster.
Here's a look at five potential trade destinations, assuming they're not on his no-trade list.
Buffalo Sabres
1 of 5
The Buffalo Sabres are poised to extend their NHL-record playoff drought to 14 seasons. It led to management making what could be the first attempt to shake up the roster, shipping Dylan Cozens to the Ottawa Senators for Josh Norris and Jacob Bernard-Docker.
Sabres general manager Kevyn Adams could make more moves this offseason. That could include adding some respected veteran leadership with plenty of postseason experience to show this club what it takes to become a playoff regular.
The Sabres may be on Chris Kreider's no-trade list, but if not, Adams could consider bringing him in. The 6'3”, 223-pound power forward could skate on the left side of the top three lines and he can also play on the right wing. His physical, energetic style would bring a welcome boost to their forward lines.
The 33-year-old's $6.5 million annual cap hit and his age could be concerning. Nevertheless, he could be rejuvenated playing with younger forwards in a leadership role. His contract only has two years remaining, making this an affordable gamble for the Sabres.
Detroit Red Wings
2 of 5
The Detroit Red Wings appeared to have a playoff berth in their grasp last season but stumbled down the stretch and narrowly missed the cut. They must be experiencing deja vu this year because they're in danger of doing it again.
General manager Steve Yzerman was given plenty of leeway by Red Wings ownership and their fans. However, another missed postseason would extend their franchise-record playoff drought to nine seasons, raising questions about Yzerman's ability to build this club into a contender.
The Wings could need more scoring depth on their forward lines if Patrick Kane tests the market in July. Kreider could be a good replacement. With $22.2 million in cap space for 2025-26, they can afford to acquire the remainder of his contract.
Kreider could slot in at left wing on their first or second line, depending on where they want Alex DeBrincat. He would bring a more aggressive, net-crashing style among their scoring forwards.
Los Angeles Kings
3 of 5
Scoring depth has been an issue for the Los Angeles Kings this season. Among teams currently holding playoff berths, their 2.80 goals per game average is the third lowest.
Limited salary-cap space hampered the Kings' efforts to address this problem before the trade deadline. Their only move was acquiring well-traveled winger Andrei Kuzmenko from the Philadelphia Flyers, which was possible only because the Flyers retained half of his $5.5 million cap hit for this season.
With $24.3 million of projected salary-cap space for next season, they should have enough to acquire a scorer and still have enough to re-sign or replace UFAs like Kuzmenko, Vladislav Gavrikov, Trevor Lewis, David Rittich and Tanner Jeannot. They'll also have enough to re-sign RFA center Alex Laferriere.
Adding a top-six winger like Kreider could boost the Kings' offense next season. His feisty, physical style could fit well alongside Anze Kopitar on the top line or with Quinton Byfield on the second line.
Minnesota Wild
4 of 5
The combined cost of buying out Zach Parise and Ryan Suter ($14.7 million) handcuffed the Minnesota Wild's efforts to boost their offense this season. They couldn't draw too much on having Kirill Kaprizov on long-term injury reserve because they must be cap-compliant when he returns to the lineup later this season.
That leaves general manager Bill Guerin having to make cost-effective additions like Justin Brazeau and Gustav Nyquist, with the Nashville Predators retaining half of Nyquist's $3.2 million cap hit for this season.
The cap handcuffs come off next season as the buyout cost for Parise and Suter drops to $1.7 million annually. That will give them a project cap space of $20.9 million with 17 active roster players under contract. There would be enough to re-sign rising star Marco Rossi and add an experienced scorer.
If Guerin goes the trade route, Kreider could be a worthwhile addition. He could slot into the second-line left wing position behind Kaprizov. His addition would also signal to Kaprizov their seriousness of contending for the Stanley Cup, helping convince him to sign a contract extension this summer.
Utah Hockey Club
5 of 5
Since becoming general manager in 2021, Bill Armstrong has carefully filled the Utah Hockey Club's roster with young players such as Logan Cooley, Dylan Guenther, and Barrett Hayton.
However, his club's need for secondary scoring has been an issue as they attempt to become playoff contenders.
Armstrong could address that problem this summer via the trade and free-agent markets. With a projected $22.3 million of salary-cap space and plenty of trade capital in draft picks and prospects, he could pursue a veteran scorer like Kreider.
Kreider could be used on the second or third lines on either wing. They have Lawson Crouse as a power forward, but he's never scored more than 24 goals in a season and his production has dropped this year.
Armstrong also has a trade chip to dangle with Matias Maccelli. The 24-year-old left winger reached 57 points last season but has struggled in 2024-25, becoming a frequent healthy scratch. He might benefit from a move to another club, perhaps to the Rangers as part of a deal for Kreider.
Stats via NHL.com and Hockey-Reference.com. Salary info via PuckPedia.
.jpg?w=600 "Report: Rodgers Gets 'Rare' Tender")