A win-win? Grading the Chris Kreider trade to Ducks

Anaheim: B

The Ducks have not made the playoffs since 2018. It's been a long and difficult rebuild for a team that hasn't sniffed the playoffs in that span yet somehow has never quite been bad enough to earn a No. 1 draft pick. But ownership made it clear when it hired three-time Stanley Cup champion Joel Quenneville — who brings considerable off-ice baggage — that the Ducks are no longer willing to be the doormat of the Pacific Division. In terms of pure, on-ice value, Kreider doesn't bring much at five-on-five any longer, where all of his advanced metrics were under water.

However, Kreider suffered from a back injury, a hand injury and vertigo this season and still scored 22 goals in 68 games (a pace of 26 goals-per-82-games). A healthy Kreider playing middle six minutes and owning real estate in front of the net on the power play isn't a bad bet for a rebound. Plus, this is an accomplished veteran player who will lend a hand to Anaheim's talented youth movement. The Ducks had the worst power play in the NHL this season, converting on only 11.8 percent of their attempts. A healthy Kreider will provide a significant boost. He's also still an excellent penalty killer and a rare threat to score on the penalty kill. 

The downside: Kreider is 34. It's no lock that his game rebounds at this point in his career. And, if it doesn't rebound, Kreider is locked in for two more seasons at a significant sum. 

Ultimately, this is a nice gamble for Anaheim that didn't require a huge commitment outside of the salary cap.

New York: B+

The Rangers' grade is helped by the following: They earned net-positive value on a 34-year-old player at a non-premium position coming off the worst year of his career. Considering Kreider's nightmare season and how little leverage the Rangers had regarding a player who had trade protection against almost half the league's teams, it's actually rather shocking that the Rangers weren't required to either attach a sweetener asset, trade Kreider for future considerations or be forced to buy-out the contract. 

Not only did they receive net-positive value, the Rangers also got off the entirety of the cap hit without any retention. That's a massive win for the Rangers and for general manager Chris Drury, who did not sign Kreider to his current contract. 

A season ago, Kreider's value would have been high coming off of a 39-goal, 75-point campaign. Drury's machinations, the decrepit morale in the Rangers' locker room and Kreider's health turned what could have been a legitimate asset for the Rangers into something slightly more profitable than a salary-cap dump. 

The prospect return is fine, but Terrance doesn't project as a high-end NHL player based on his limited scoring in Canadian juniors. 

At day's end, the Rangers' real victory will be determined by how they repurpose the new cap space.