The Rangers third line will surely look different next year.
After reports came out yesterday that Martin St. Louis will be seeking employment elsewhere, general manager Glen Sather traded restricted free agent Carl Hagelin to the Anaheim Ducks along with the 59th and 179th pick in the draft for winger Emerson Etem and the 41st pick in the draft.
Sather went out and picked left wing Ryan Gropp of the Seattle Thunderbirds of the Western Hockey League with his pick.
The Rangers also moved backup goaltender Cam Talbot to the Edmonton Oilers for the 57th, 79th and 184th picks in the draft and the flipped No. 57 to the Capitals for the 62nd and 113th overall.
The move allowed the Rangers to strengthen the pipeline as well as give Sather some breathing room with the cap. Hagelin was going to command $3.5 to $4 million to sign and Talbot’s role could be filled by a younger and cheaper backstop.
That being said, Sather is pressing his luck next season. The team’s success this year came from the ability to develop Kevin Hayes, Jesper Fast, and JT Miller into viable NHL players. Now he will be looking to do it again.
Etem at age 23, has never played a full season in the NHL, and scored 15 goals and 16 assists over 122 games. He’s a poor man’s Hagelin, but if he can take the next step, we will also be a cheaper Hagelin.
The question is if Etem will develop Hagelin’s penalty kill abilities, which was so crucial for the Rangers.
And you can expect Fast to move up to the third line, as he played on the Top 9 during the last two rounds of the playoffs, rather effectively. So if both Etem and Fast take that extra step, then the Rangers may be in good shape. Right now, though, they were a better team yesterday than they are today.
Talbot’s loss is easier to swallow, as you expect Henrik Lundqvist to play 65 games and not get hurt on a freak injury again. That said, the Prince filled in rather admirably during the King’s absence.
Sather will probably sign a backup, rather than turn the reigns over to Mackenzie Skapski, who still seemed green and only played in games against the woeful Buffalo Sabres.
With free agency starting on Wednesday, the Rangers may also look for a cheap fourth line winger and a No. 7 defenseman.
The Rangers also picked Swedish right wing Robin Kovacs, 62nd, used the 79th pick on WHL defenseman Sergey Zborovskiy, and the 89th pick to take Finnish center Aleksi Saarela.
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