BREAKING: New York Rangers trade Ryan Lindgren, Jimmy Vesey to the Colorado Avalanche
The New York Rangers and Colorado Avalanche have agreed on a trade that will send Jimmy Vesey and Ryan Lindgren to the Colorado Avalanche in exchange for a package containing Jusso Parssinen and Calvin de Haan. The details of this trade are still being worked out at the time of writing, but the deal seems to involve two of the Rangers’ pending UFAs, whom they would have lost for nothing if things had continued the way they were going.
Lindgren’s struggles have been well documented, but he signed a one-year, $4 million deal in the summer that walked him to unrestricted free agency this summer. He’s not what he used to be, as injuries have destroyed his body, but the Avalanche will hope to get more out of him in the Mile High City. He might be a good addition for the Avalanche when he’s in a more sheltered role. Lindgren was acquired in the trade that sent Rick Nash and was solid during his first few years but has struggled lately.
Vesey came back to the Rangers after a few years in the wilderness. He’s struggled to hold down his typical spot on the fourth line this season, as the Rangers youth movement is taking jobs away from those grizzled veterans. He’ll be a great penalty killer in Denver, and the Rangers can use his spot to get players like Arthur Kaliyev, Brett Berard, and Brennan Othmann more game time in the NHL.
As for the return, Calvin de Haan isn’t much, and he isn’t particularly glamorous. He’s a veteran defenseman who can play both sides and is also a pending UFA at the end of the year. I wonder if this is a stop-gap until K’Andre Miller is completely healthy, and then he, too, could be traded for more draft picks before the trade deadline next week.
Jusso Parssinen has bounced around. He’s shown flashes of upside, but he’s never been able to land consistently. New York’s got places for him if he is up to it, but he’s hardly an upgrade over what the Rangers have. He’s an acceptable replacement in the bottom six and can be helpful on the second powerplay unit, but this looks like the first of many moves by Chris Drury and his staff this March.
Jonathan Quick wows with dynamic performance against Nashville
In a game the New York Rangers had to win Sunday night at Madison Square Garden to keep their playoff hopes alive, Rangers’ goaltender Jonathan Quick shut out the Nashville Predators 4-0.
Playing in his 800th National Hockey League game, Jonathan Quick earned his 63rd career shutout and third this season. The 39-year-old tendy and Connecticut native finished with 34 saves, including a whopping 20 in the third period. As a result of his play, Quick was given the Broadway Hat and became the sixth goalie in the past 50 years to register three shutouts in a single season at age 39 or older.
