Coming into this season, Swedish defenseman Nils Lundkvist was an intriguing rookie to watch for the New York Rangers, given his success in the Swedish Hockey League (SHL) over the past couple of years, and his status as a first-round draft pick in 2018. The Rangers selected him 28th overall that year, using a pick they acquired from the Tampa Bay Lightning as part of the Ryan McDonagh/J.T. Miller trade.
Given the underwhelming (to put it lightly) returns from other pieces of that trade — Libor Hajek and now ex-Rangers Vladislav Namestnikov and Brett Howden, as well as a 2019 second-round pick that became center prospect Karl Henriksson — Lundkvist represents the Rangers’ best chance at gaining something meaningful out of the deal.