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Hartnett: Rangers 'Absolutely' Should Look into Acquiring Jonathan Toews


Phil

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The Rangers should absolutely kick the tires on the possibility of trading for Chicago Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews, given the Hawks? sudden change of direction.

 

Though Chicago plans to return to the level of Stanley Cup contenders, the process could take several years. At age 32, Toews has plenty of strong individual seasons ahead of him ? but can he afford spending the remainder of his prime on a fading team that has failed to make the playoffs in two of the past three seasons and has already begun shedding familiar names?

 

The Blueshirts need to add a dominant center who is capable of forming a dynamic one-two punch with Mika Zibanejad. Stanley Cup winning teams are built with strength down the middle. The Rangers also need to identify a captain who can teach a youthful roster how to walk, talk, and skate like champions. Toews? ability and accomplishments fit the bill.

 

For Toews, an opportunity to play in New York would allow him to remain in a large market and enhance his legacy. He?s already got three championship rings to his name ? but if he comes to New York and replicates Mark Messier?s raising of Lord Stanley on Garden ice, his name is going to be etched into the stratosphere. Even though Toews was age six when the Blueshirts ended a 54-year Stanley Cup drought, all Canadians raised on hockey recognize the 1994 curse-breaking Rangers as one of the greatest moments in NHL history.

 

Who wouldn?t want to be the next Rangers captain after Messier to break a decades-long Stanley Cup wait?

 

As long as Zibanejad, Artemi Panarin, Adam Fox, Igor Shesterkin, Kaapo Kakko, and Alexis Lafreniere aren?t part of the package, Rangers general manager Jeff Gorton should make every effort to acquire Toews as the centerpiece for a Broadway revival.

 

https://www.radio.com/wfan/sports/rangers/hartnett-rangers-absolutely-should-look-at-jonathan-toews?utm_campaign=wfan.radio.com&utm_content=1603394985&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter&utm_term=WFAN-AM

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Huge Toews fan and Hawks fan here... Just no... Not without serious retention.

 

Huge non-Toews fan.

If they can get him at 8m. Its something you have to look into.

 

I dont want to depart with prospects, but ... lias... :( :( :(

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It's pure fantasy, but I'd flip Trouba for him straight up.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Blueshirts Brotherhood mobile app powered by Tapatalk

They’re not looking for a Trouba if they are rebuilding. Chytil/Kravtsov, 1st, probably a defensive prospect if you expect them to retain, plus a Strome/Buch roster player maybe get away with a Smith cap dump.

 

I’d rather add a bunch of picks over players not named Smith .

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Good luck signing Zib if we did this. We're already a top heavy team. We need four solid 2m players, not one 8m player.

 

I think the center has to come from within. Even if it?s Strome for a year. Who knows, Laf might be the guy. Others are still very young. Howden, eh idk, Chytil is more of shooter so far than a playmaker and Barron, who i am a big fan of is only be a rookie.

 

Toews would be a nice fit for any team yet Zibby and the cap don?t make this a good fit IMO. I don?t think this Rangers team is ready to go deep into the playoffs either b/c the roster is actually getting younger. I think Towes is a win now player. Nice fit for a Colorado, Dallas maybe a St Louis . . . with some cap space he fits almost anywhere for a team looking to win over the next two years IMO.

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I love Toews, but that cap hit is a lot. He also has 3 years left on that deal. He is a great fit, and the exact type of player we can use, but Chicago is most likely going to suck that prospect pool dry in obtaining him.

 

The Hawks are definitely rebuilding, so they're going to want a ton for Toews; Here's their press release: http://www.nhl.com/blackhawks/news/a-message-to-blackhawks-fans/c-319482696

 

We'll find the right guy...who knows, Strome might just be the guy. I wanna see what he does this season and see if he improves from last year.

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He's exactly what they need but the cost to acquire and cap hit would be prohibitive unless Hawks retained ... And why would they?

 

Toews' cap hit is $10.5M for three years. So if Chicago retained 50%, that brings it down to $5.25M for each team. His total remaining actual salary since Chicago already paid his signing bonus this year ($2M, $6.9M, $6.9M) is $15.8M. So they would be on the hook for $7.9M total spread over three years, minus escrow. Chicago would be going through a full rebuild, so that cap number probably doesn't hurt them, even in year three.

 

That said, the cap/salary retention will cost in addition to the assets to acquire him. To my knowledge, there has never been that much retention over that many years in a trade. So it is difficult to assess that value. I would think the minimum would be a 1st round pick.

 

From there, what is a Toews worth from age 32-35? For a rebuilding team like Chicago, I would guess a top prospect, a legitimate youngish roster player, a mid level prospect, and a 1st round pick.

 

Chicago gets: Lundkvist, Strome, Barron, 2021 1st, 2022 1st

Rangers Get: Toews (50% salary retained)

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I don't see a point in adding Toews for at least another year. I definitely don't see the point in adding Toews right now while paying through the nose to do the Blackhawks a solid.

 

Toews is the guy you add - at this point, anyway - when you're looking to add the wily veteran who's been there and can really step up in the playoffs. He's not the guy you add when your team is as young as we are.

 

If you're going to add a Toews-ish figure, go throw 1.5M at Corey Perry this year, or go "bail" the Ducks out of Getzlaf for just one season.

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Toews' cap hit is $10.5M for three years. So if Chicago retained 50%, that brings it down to $5.25M for each team. His total remaining actual salary since Chicago already paid his signing bonus this year ($2M, $6.9M, $6.9M) is $15.8M. So they would be on the hook for $7.9M total spread over three years, minus escrow. Chicago would be going through a full rebuild, so that cap number probably doesn't hurt them, even in year three.

 

That said, the cap/salary retention will cost in addition to the assets to acquire him. To my knowledge, there has never been that much retention over that many years in a trade. So it is difficult to assess that value. I would think the minimum would be a 1st round pick.

 

From there, what is a Toews worth from age 32-35? For a rebuilding team like Chicago, I would guess a top prospect, a legitimate youngish roster player, a mid level prospect, and a 1st round pick.

 

Chicago gets: Lundkvist, Strome, Barron, 2021 1st, 2022 1st

Rangers Get: Toews (50% salary retained)

 

Nah, I think that's what you pay for a 70pt player in his prime, not a 32 year old.

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Chicago gets: Lundkvist, Strome, Barron, 2021 1st, 2022 1st

Rangers Get: Toews (50% salary retained)

 

Nah, I think that's what you pay for a 70pt player in his prime, not a 32 year old.

 

Agree, respectfully that offer is three #1 picks along with Strome and Barron for a 32 yr old.

 

There will be other star players available in the future. There always are. I hold onto the cards and don?t use so many up. I?m reluctant to move out #1 picks too b/c the stock will always have to be rotated long term. The lottery picks made this easy. Keep the stars and rotate the stock. I don?t think this is the time to go star hunting but that?s just me.

 

Cheers

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Toews' cap hit is $10.5M for three years. So if Chicago retained 50%, that brings it down to $5.25M for each team. His total remaining actual salary since Chicago already paid his signing bonus this year ($2M, $6.9M, $6.9M) is $15.8M. So they would be on the hook for $7.9M total spread over three years, minus escrow. Chicago would be going through a full rebuild, so that cap number probably doesn't hurt them, even in year three.

 

That said, the cap/salary retention will cost in addition to the assets to acquire him. To my knowledge, there has never been that much retention over that many years in a trade. So it is difficult to assess that value. I would think the minimum would be a 1st round pick.

 

From there, what is a Toews worth from age 32-35? For a rebuilding team like Chicago, I would guess a top prospect, a legitimate youngish roster player, a mid level prospect, and a 1st round pick.

 

Chicago gets: Lundkvist, Strome, Barron, 2021 1st, 2022 1st

Rangers Get: Toews (50% salary retained)

 

That’s far too high for him at this point even with 50% salary/cap hit retained.

It’s probably more like a 1st, a good prospect, plus a roster player. Maybe one other small to medium sized piece. But that’s all.

 

Cant give up 2 1sts, plus a high level prospect, plus a mid-level prospect for 3 seasons of Toews at 32.

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AJ's deal isn't all that high when you are asking the Blackhawks to incur a $5.25 million cap charge and to pay Toews half his salary to for the next three years to play against them. If anything, I'd say make the 2022 1st conditional on winning a Cup in any of the years Toews is here in order to hit, otherwise it reverts into a 2nd round pick at the expiration of Toews' deal.
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AJ's deal isn't all that high when you are asking the Blackhawks to incur a $5.25 million cap charge and to pay Toews half his salary to for the next three years to play against them. If anything, I'd say make the 2022 1st conditional on winning a Cup in any of the years Toews is here in order to hit, otherwise it reverts into a 2nd round pick at the expiration of Toews' deal.

 

But again, why?

 

Why are we selling the farm to bring in Toews right now? Next offseason, I get it, sure. It's palatable. Why now?

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Toews' cap hit is $10.5M for three years. So if Chicago retained 50%, that brings it down to $5.25M for each team. His total remaining actual salary since Chicago already paid his signing bonus this year ($2M, $6.9M, $6.9M) is $15.8M. So they would be on the hook for $7.9M total spread over three years, minus escrow. Chicago would be going through a full rebuild, so that cap number probably doesn't hurt them, even in year three.

 

That said, the cap/salary retention will cost in addition to the assets to acquire him. To my knowledge, there has never been that much retention over that many years in a trade. So it is difficult to assess that value. I would think the minimum would be a 1st round pick.

 

From there, what is a Toews worth from age 32-35? For a rebuilding team like Chicago, I would guess a top prospect, a legitimate youngish roster player, a mid level prospect, and a 1st round pick.

 

Chicago gets: Lundkvist, Strome, Barron, 2021 1st, 2022 1st

Rangers Get: Toews (50% salary retained)

You can make arguments for and against a trade like that. I just wonder how much better we would be long term if we did that. Adding Toews probably doesn’t really jump the needle full fledged for 2 seasons. At that point we are talking about one more season and a decline in skill anyway, plus the loss of real assets in those picks that we could have used for another piece via trade or draft if things were going so horribly wrong that we still had high picks.

 

Toews fits here, but in his last year with salary retention and as a complimentary piece to a stacked team just missing that special intangible piece, not as a focal point right now imo.

 

If he stays in Chicago, do I revisit this next offseason if we happened to get in the playoffs and go into the second round or so next year? You betcha.

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