The New York Rangers already made their big move by solving two issues with one trade.
On February 9th, GM Chris Drury shipped a conditional first-round pick (2023), a conditional fourth-round pick (2024), forward Sammy Blais, and prospect defenseman Hunter Skinner to the St. Louis Blues for forward Vladimir Tarasenko (50% salary retained) and defenseman Niko Mikkola.
By doing so, the Rangers filled a huge need for a top-six right wing and upgrade on the third-pair left defense spot.
“It’s something we’ve been looking at for a while,” Drury said. “It gives the two new players a little more time to acclimate to our group, so excited to do it now and get them in the lineup.