The 2025 NHL Trade Deadline is just three weeks away and the New York Rangers have seven games left before the deadline to figure out what direction they will be going in. They are three points out of a wild card spot with a few games in hand over the teams in front of them. If things don’t go their way and they decide to sell off some players, they have three pending unrestricted free agents who could be dealt. Here, we are going to look at those players and try to figure out what a realistic trade return could look like.
Player #1: Jimmy Vesey
Jimmy Vesey began his NHL career with the Rangers back in the 2016-17 season and was part of the team for three seasons before getting traded. He played for the Buffalo Sabres, Toronto Maple Leafs, Vancouver Canucks. and New Jersey Devils before signing a professional tryout with the Rangers prior to the 2022-23 season. He played well enough that he got a deal and then earned himself a two-year extension which expires after this season. It has been an up and down season for Vesey as he started the season injured and has been a frequent healthy scratch for a majority of the time he has been healthy. He has just three goals and four points in 30 games played and it seems he is the odd man out when everyone else is healthy.
He has gotten back into the lineup recently due to Adam Edstrom’s injury, but he is still just a fourth-liner who likely won’t be back after this season. If the Rangers aren’t in a good position at the deadline, there would be plenty of teams looking for good fourth liners with playoff experience. Vesey has played in 31 playoff games and while he isn’t going to score many goals, he is a good penally killer and is responsible in his own end. A likely trade return would be a fourth- or fifth-round pick. While it isn’t much, the Rangers could use as many draft picks as possible since they have traded a bunch over the past few years.
Player #2: Reilly Smith
After winning the Stanley Cup with the Vegas Golden Knights at the end of the 2022-23 season, Reilly Smith was shipped off to the Pittsburgh Penguins and played just one season with them after it looked like he just didn’t fit in with the team. Last offseason, the Penguins traded him to the Rangers for a second-round and fifth-round pick. He has been solid this season with 10 goals and 26 points in 54 games played, but he wasn’t the answer the team was hoping for; he was brought in to play right wing on a line with Mika Zibanejad and Chris Kreider, but it didn’t really work. He has bounced up and down the lineup and was even a healthy scratch earlier this season, so it seems his time in New York will be short lived, whether he is traded or leaves this summer.
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Smith would be a valuable addition to any playoff-bound team as he has 106 games of playoff experience and a Stanley Cup to his name. He played very well in the Golden Knights’ run to the Stanley Cup with four goals and 14 points in 22 games played. While the Rangers likely won’t be getting back the second- and fifth-round pick they traded for him, they could still get some decent value back, whether that be a third-round pick, a young prospect, or even an NHL-ready player. So while it didn’t really work out the way they wanted it to, the Rangers could still turn this into a win for them now and in the future.
Player #3: Ryan Lindgren
Ryan Lindgren has been a staple on the Rangers’ blue line since the 2019-20 season and he is usually been paired alongside Adam Fox. For a few seasons, they were considered one of the best defensive pairs in the league as their games just complemented each other very well. However, over this season and last, Lindgren’s play has declined heavily and considering his injury history and play style, it is not a surprise to see him struggling. The Rangers could have given him a long-term deal last summer when he was a restricted free agent, but they opted for a one-year deal and that all but sealed his fate. This season will be Lindgren’s last as a Ranger and now is the perfect time to move on from him.
The defensive trade market isn’t very full of talent heading into the deadline and while there might be some surprise names here and there that get moved, most out there now aren’t very appealing. While Lindgren’s play has declined, teams are still going to view him as a top-four shutdown defenseman who is going to block shots and play physical every game. Teams value that heading into the playoffs and with 43 games of playoff experience and two runs to the Eastern Conference Finals under his belt, Lindgren would be a valuable addition to any team looking for a defenseman. While he probably wouldn’t fetch the Rangers a first-round pick, a second-round pick plus a prospect or another NHL-ready player is not out of the question. He is the player who will bring back the most in a trade if he is moved.
The Rangers are in a very interesting spot as for the first time in a number of seasons, their playoff spot is not locked in. They are going to have to fight in each of their remaining games as every point is valuable at this time of the season. If they don’t make the most of these next seven games, keep an eye out for these three names to be moved and what the returns look like.
