New York Rangers trade rumors: Kevin Hayes is drawing interest

NEW YORK, NY – OCTOBER 23: Kevin Hayes #13 of the New York Rangers skates with the puck against the Florida Panthers at Madison Square Garden on October 23, 2018 in New York City. The New York Rangers won 5-2. (Photo by Jared Silber/NHLI via Getty Images)

The New York Rangers are the second worst team in terms of points through 11 games. As a bottom feeder, the team is a prime candidate for another fire sale.

Understanding NHL roster construction is a challenge comparable to open heart surgery. There are lots of moving parts surrounding what the person is trying to do, that if messed up could throw the whole system into disarray. For an NHL general manager, the players on a roster are the different systems within the human body.

Right now, the New York Rangers are an extremely sick patient with rotting off parts. Of course, instead of infectious diseases, these are players on expiring contract on the verge of being an unrestricted free agent. This is where a G.M needs to decide whether or not a piece belongs with the team based on the long-term direction.

That is ultimately what’s at stake for the Rangers, no matter what happens during the 2018-2019 season, there is no salvaging the final result. The team is going to be one of the five worst in the entire league because it just does not have enough talent to compete. So, that means that Jeff Gorton needs to take a long hard look at certain players and decide if they fit or not.

The most valuable of these, Kevin Hayes, is a unique situation. As a college free agent, he hand-picked the Rangers as his preferred landing spot. Coming off of a Stanley Cup final run, New York was in a great position to offer a chance to compete right away and give Hayes an opportunity to succeed.

Now four years later, the Rangers need to either give Hayes a long-term contract extension in the neighborhood of $six million per season for at least five years or trade him to a contender as a rental.

At age 26, Hayes is young enough that he could still fit into the Rangers window to compete. In all likelihood, the team will be good enough to be in the mix for a playoff spot during the 2020-2021 season. Fixing the team is going to be a multi-year process that will require things to get worse before they get better.

There are rumors that the Winnipeg Jets are interested in the Boston native that were reported last Saturday during an intermission break of Hockey Night in Canada.

Kypreos said Hayes getting a lot of attention from teams. Said possibly Jets for a pick or prospect. #NYR
— Matt Calamia (@MattCalamia) October 28, 2018

In theory, this is the perfect trade for the Rangers. Recouping another draft pick and a prospect is what a team still at least two years away from competing needs. The more draft picks a team has, the more cheap roster talent it can have.

One factor to consider when it comes to keeping Hayes is the logjam at the center position. New York’s two top prospects, Filip Chytil and Lias Andersson both play the position. In addition, Mika Zibanejad is signed long-term leaving Hayes as the odd man out in New York.

Next: Possible landing spots for Henrik Lundqvist

There is plenty of time left for the decision to be made, but, the sooner a trade is made, the better. There is the lingering possibility that the longer the team waits, the more uncertain the situation becomes and players are left wondering why they should go as hard as they can in a game for a team that may not want them.

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