The New York Rangers need to take the next steps of their retool, and the first major one will undoubtedly be trading center Vincent Trocheck. There are plenty of teams that need a center, and Trocheck presented himself as the best available. Things did change a bit after Dylan Larkin requested a trade from the Detroit Red Wings, but he has a three-team trade list that may grow, so he's not the most available.
It will be up to Drury to get a good enough return for Trocheck, considering it will be difficult for the team to replace him as a top two center on their roster. Obviously, fans will look towards playoff teams that are loaded with young talent that are looking to make a push for a Stanley Cup title Well, the Rangers can count out one team.
The Athletic's Vincent Mercogliano reported in his latest article that the Montreal Canadiens are not expected to be suitors for Trocheck.
Canadiens not expected to be suitors for Vincent Trocheck
"Many of the teams believed to have interest are the same as The Athletic reported in March, but others have emerged as potential suitors in recent weeks. The Montreal Canadiens are not one of them, according to a league source, who noted there has been no contact between the two clubs about Trocheck," writes Mercogliano.
The Canadiens would have been an ideal trade partner with the Rangers, considering the roster they have built over the years. Of course, Rangers fans can't help but feel some sort of jealousy at what the Canadiens built, as former general manager Jeff Gorton is running the show as their president of hockey operations. One has to wonder what the Rangers could have looked like had team owner James Dolan not fired him.
Obviously, the Canadiens are not going to trade a member of their young core of pro players like Nick Suzuki, Cole Caufield, Juraj Slafkovsky, Ivan Demidov, or Lane Hutson. That would be foolish of the Canadiens, considering the team was three wins away from reaching the Stanley Cup Final. But, the Canadiens do have a stacked farm system. Scott Wheeler of The Athletic ranked the Canadiens farm system ninth-best in all of the NHL.
Drury is looking for a young player "who’s ready to contribute right away and projects as a long-term core piece," according to Mercogliano. That, and they are looking for draft picks and other prospects in return. When looking at the Canadiens, Michael Hage stands out, who was recently linked to the Toronto Maple Leafs as a potential piece in a failed Matthew Knies trade to the Canadiens. Hage is coming off of a strong 52 point season with the Michigan Wolverines. However, it's unsure if the Canadiens would have even considered giving up Hage for Trocheck.
Their other top forward prospect is Alexander Zharovsky, a winger from Russia who was included in the failed Knies trade. Zharovsky is coming off of a 42 point season in the KHL (59 games). Zharovsky is projected to be a top six forward in the NHL. Again, another ideal main piece in a Trocheck trade.
But, a trade between the Rangers and Canadiens is not happening. While it would have been nice if the Rangers were able to pry away some young talent from Montreal's prospect pipeline, they just don't appear to be too interested in acquiring Trocheck to help with their Stanley Cup push.
