{"id":139143,"date":"2026-02-19T20:12:10","date_gmt":"2026-02-19T20:12:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/139143\/"},"modified":"2026-02-19T20:12:10","modified_gmt":"2026-02-19T20:12:10","slug":"rangers-linked-to-acquiring-34-8m-sniper-despite-retool-plans","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/139143\/","title":{"rendered":"Rangers Linked to Acquiring $34.8M Sniper Despite Retool Plans"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>\t\t\t\t<img width=\"780\" height=\"439\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/GettyImages-2211356039_e4806c-e1771526434671.jpg\" class=\"attachment-featured-image size-featured-image wp-post-image\" alt=\"New York Rangers\"   decoding=\"async\" fetchpriority=\"high\"\/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tGetty\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<p>Rangers linked to acquiring Patrik Laine.<\/p>\n<p>The New York <a class=\"wpil_keyword_link\" href=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/sports\/mlb\/texas-rangers\/\" title=\"Rangers\" data-wpil-keyword-link=\"linked\" data-wpil-monitor-id=\"169680\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Rangers<\/a> are expected to retool and trade away some players, but they could make a surprising trade.<\/p>\n<p>New York is hoping to compete for a playoff spot next season. So the Rangers still could look to bring players in ahead of the March 6 trade deadline. NHL analyst Jeremy Tingly of NHLTradeRumors linked the Rangers to acquiring Montreal Canadiens sniper Patrik Laine ahead of the deadline.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s not often you see a Rangers\/Canadiens trade, but this year could be different given the fact the Canadiens would love to acquire Vincent Trocheck,\u201d Tingly <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nhltraderumors.me\/2026\/02\/4-potential-trade-destinations-for.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener external nofollow\">wrote<\/a>. \u201cThese two teams have been in ongoing talks, and if things advance, and Trocheck is heading to Montreal, don\u2019t be surprised to see Laine included, along with a couple of top prospects, which the Habs have plenty of.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Laine being part of a return for Trocheck does make sense, as it helps the salary work. Meanwhile, New York can get a good look at the former second overall pick to see if he\u2019s healthy and fits into their system before he becomes a free agent on July 1.<\/p>\n<p>Laine wouldn\u2019t be the key part of the return for the Rangers, but he would be an intriguing addition to help fill out the roster for the rest of the year.<\/p>\n<p>Laine is in the <a href=\"https:\/\/puckpedia.com\/player\/patrik-laine\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener external nofollow\">final year of his four-year, $34.8 million deal<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Rangers Plan to Retool<\/p>\n<p>New York has had a disappointing season, and the team now plans to begin a retool.<\/p>\n<p>The Rangers have already traded Artemi Panarin to the Los Angeles <a class=\"wpil_keyword_link\" href=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/sports\/nba\/sacramento-kings\/\" title=\"Kings\" data-wpil-keyword-link=\"linked\" data-wpil-monitor-id=\"169679\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Kings<\/a> and that may just be the start. Rangers general manager Chris Drury issued a letter that said the team plans to retool. However, the team wants to be competitive next season.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOver the last few years, we\u2019ve had some successes and moments to cherish. But ultimately it was not the end goal,\u201d Drury <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nhl.com\/rangers\/news\/a-message-from-chris-drury-to-our-fans\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener external nofollow\">wrote<\/a>. \u201cWe are working relentlessly every day to bring a Stanley Cup back to New York. Because that is what our fans deserve. With our position in the standings and injuries to key players this season, we must be honest and realistic about our situation. We are not going to stand pat \u2013 a shift will give us the ability to be smart and opportunistic as we retool the team.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis will not be a rebuild. This will be a retool built around our core players and prospects. We will target players that bring tenacity, skill, speed, and a winning pedigree. With a focus on obtaining young players, draft picks. And cap space to allow us flexibility moving forward. That may mean saying goodbye to players that have brought us and our fans great moments over the years. These players represented the Rangers with pride and class and will always be a part of our family.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Who else the Rangers will trade is to be seen. But New York could also look to add players to the roster they believe can be competitive next season.<\/p>\n<p>Laine Close to a Return<\/p>\n<p>Laine was expected to be a key part of the Canadiens roster, but he has been injured this season.<\/p>\n<p>The former second overall pick underwent core surgery in October and was expected to miss 3-4 months. Yet, as Montreal returned to practice, Laine is still not on the ice.<\/p>\n<p data-mrf-recirculation=\"Articles \/ Paragraph Links\">\u201cForward Patrik Laine will not participate in today\u2019s practice (lower body, is being evaluated on a daily basis),\u201d the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/CanadiensMTL\/status\/2023851296751841583\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener external nofollow\" data-mrf-link=\"https:\/\/x.com\/CanadiensMTL\/status\/2023851296751841583\">team wrote<\/a>\u00a0in a statement on X.<\/p>\n<p data-mrf-recirculation=\"Articles \/ Paragraph Links\">Laine has\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nhl.com\/canadiens\/player\/patrik-laine-8479339\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener external nofollow\" data-mrf-link=\"https:\/\/www.nhl.com\/canadiens\/player\/patrik-laine-8479339\">skated in just 5 games<\/a>, recording 1 assist this season as he\u2019s dealt with an injury, but is expected to return soon.<\/p>\n<p>\n\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/author\/coleshelton\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Cole Shelton<\/a> Cole Shelton covers the NHL, MLB and Cleveland Browns for Heavy.com. He has covered pro and college sports since 2016, including bylines at BJ Penn, USA Today, SB Nation, Rotowire, Canadian Baseball Network and more.  <a href=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/author\/coleshelton\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">More about Cole Shelton<\/a>\t\t<\/p>\n<p>\n\t\t\tMore Heavy on NY Rangers\n\t\t<\/p>\n<p>\n\t\t\t\tLoading more stories\n\t\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Getty Rangers linked to acquiring Patrik Laine. The New York Rangers are expected to retool and trade away&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":139144,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[9,24,55,54,56],"class_list":{"0":"post-139143","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-new-york-city","8":"tag-new-york","9":"tag-new-york-city","10":"tag-new-york-city-headlines","11":"tag-new-york-city-news","12":"tag-ny"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/139143","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=139143"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/139143\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/139144"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=139143"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=139143"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=139143"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}