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The New York Rangers signed right winger Kaapo Kakko to a one-year $2.4 million extension on June 13, but NHL insider Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet says that doesn’t end the trade rumors for him.
Kakko had been the subject of trade rumors last season and entering this summer. But, many expected the one-year extension would put those to be. However, Friedman reports that the one-year deal that Kakko signed won’t put an end to trade talks.
“I think this is a little bit of a strategy by team and agent to say, ‘Let’s eliminate the guesswork so if there is anywhere else out there that makes sense for him and is willing to propose us a fair deal, we’re all going to know what the numbers are,” Friedman said on 32 Thoughts on June 14.
As Friedman says, the extension gives other teams clarity on what Kakko will be making next season, to make a trade easier. The NHL insider also doubled down on his report that the Rangers still could trade Kakko this summer on The Jeff Marek Show.
“Look, this could be a really active trading season, if there’s another team that’s out there that likes Kakko, they don’t have to sit there and say, ‘Well what’s his number going to be?’ Or, ‘We have to negotiate a contract,'” Friedman said (via Sportsnet). “The business is taken care of, and it just makes life easier on everyone involved.”
Ultimately, Friedman think both the Rangers and Kakko are fine if he is playing for the team next season, or is traded this summer.
“If all things stay equal and Kakko and the Rangers are still married next season, everyone’s going to be okay with that,” Friedman said, but believes the Rangers think, “If it stays the same, we’ll make it work. If this knocks a proposal loose, we’ll listen.”
Kakko was drafted by the Rangers with the second overall pick in the 2019 NHL draft.
Rangers Hoping Kakko Can Reach Full Potential
Since entering the NHL in 2019, Kakko has struggled to be a consistent NHL player.
The winger’s career-high in points is 40, while this past season, Kakko was a healthy scratch for Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Final, which frustrated the forward.
“Playoffs was different,” Kakko said, via NHL.com. “Of course, everyone wants to play. … I was not happy I [was] not in the lineup, but I still wanted to win. I was hoping the win for the team and keep going and then get back to the lineup at some point, but I can say I was not happy and I think all the guys in this room, like everyone wants to play.”
Although Kakko hasn’t found his footing in the NHL, Rangers general manager Chris Drury said the team doesn’t have plans to give up on the former second-overall pick.
“We were talking about Laf at this time last year and refuting rumors that I was trying to trade him… Kaapo Kakko is still a young player… We’re going to continue to try and find everything we can do to help him reach his potential,” Drury said, according to USA Today’s Vince Z. Mercogliano.
This past season, Kakko recorded 13 goals and 6 assists for 19 points in 61 games.
Rangers Pending Free Agents
After signing pending RFA Kakko to a one-year extension, the Rangers now have seven pending free agents.
New York has three pending unrestricted free agents at forwards, with those being Jack Roslovic, Alexander Wennberg, and Blake Wheeler. On defense, the Rangers have Erik Gustafsson and Chad Ruhwedel as pending UFAs and Braden Schneider and Ryan Lindgren as pending RFAs.
New York has just over $9 million in cap space, according to CapFriendly.
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