5 Offseason Landing Spots for Rangers Forward Kaapo Kakko

Despite winning the Presidents' Trophy with the NHL's best regular season record, the 2023-24 New York Rangers season ended with disappointment on Saturday night with a 2-1 Game 6 loss to the Florida Panthers in the Eastern Conference Final.

It was not necessarily about what the Rangers did wrong, but the simple fact they ran into a Panthers team that looks like a buzzsaw going through the playoffs on their way to a second consecutive Stanley Cup Final.

Still, the Rangers have flaws and big questions to answer this offseason.

When it comes to the questions, none might be bigger than what they are going to do with former No. 2 overall pick Kaapo Kakko as he heads toward restricted free agency.

While Alexis Lafreniere took a massive leap forward in the regular season and playoffs and started to become the star forward the Rangers envisioned when they selected him as No. 1 overall, it has not happened yet for Kakko. He isn't a bad player, he just hasn't taken the big step forward.

Here now are five potential offseason destinations for the young forward.

Sometimes the best solution is the simplest and easiest solution.

Maybe Kakko has not become a star.

Maybe he did not take the leap forward that Lafreniere has in the regular season or playoffs.

None of that means he is not a good or useful player. Because he is. When Kakko is on the ice for the Rangers the play is typically tilted in their favor, he is a strong defensive presence, he drives possession and he does a lot of the dirty work along the walls and boards that tends to go unnoticed.

There is value in that, even if it is as a depth player or a complementary part of a top-six line. Somebody has to fill that role, and the Rangers already have somebody on the roster who knows the system and is familiar with the team.

Why mess with it if you do not have to? And are you going to find somebody better at those things on the open market and for a cheaper price? Probably not. Finding a replacement for him in a trade is going to cost assets.

So why not just accept that this is maybe what he is, re-sign him, and hope that maybe he can put everything together and still find his breakthrough. Even if he does not, at the absolute bare minimum, you know you still at least have a useful player that can do a lot of the thankless grunt work that has to be done.

In some ways Kakko seems like he is not only the perfect Hurricane, but also destined to eventually become one.

He checks all of the boxes you could imagine.

Great underlying numbers. Strong defensive player. But does not always translate all of that into offense. He seems like the type of player an analytically based front office would have heavy interest in, and the type of player Carolina has worked to acquire in the past.

Especially since their forward group could be undergoing dramatic changes in the coming weeks and months.

Carolina has pending unrestricted free agents at forward (Jake Guentzel, Teuvo Teravainen, Stefan Noesen, and Jordan Martinook) and four pending restricted free agents (Seth Jarvis, Martin Necas, Maxime Comtois, and Jack Drury). Not all of those players will be back, and somebody is going to have to fill some of those spots.

Kakko could be an interesting alternative.

The Hurricanes could also get aggressive and try to take advantage of the Rangers' salary cap situation by going the offer sheet route. An offer as high as $4.9 million would only cost them a second-round pick in compensation, and the Hurricanes still have their own 2025 second-round selection.

The Buffalo Sabres will face immense pressure to make the playoffs during the 2024-25 season, and it is pretty clear their roster needs some help if they are going to get there.

They could probably use a player like Kakko, even in his current form and even if he never becomes a star.

Buffalo not only needs more quality forward depth throughout its lineup, it needs a stronger defensive and possession-driving presence within that group. The Sabres were, at best, a middle-of-the-pack team in terms of driving possession this season and really struggled to defend at times despite having an extremely talented group of defensemen. They need more help from their forwards in both areas.

The Sabres have also reportedly had an interest in Kakko in the past, and if the opportunity to acquire him presents itself they would be wise to inquire.

When you look at the standings the past few seasons the Ducks might seem like they are still light years away from contending. But that might not be entirely accurate as they are starting to bring some important pieces together.

Leo Carlsson and Mason McTavish are key cornerstones, while Trevor Zegras should be poised for a bounce-back year in 2024-25. Add in players like Cutter Gauthier, some strong young defensemen and capable veterans like Troy Terry, Frank Vatrano and Ryan Strome and they have some pieces here that could make this an interesting team relatively quickly.

There are a lot of "ifs" and "hopes" in that, but there is a light at the end of the tunnel.

They also showed some significant defensive improvements under first-year head coach Greg Cronin.

Adding a player like Kakko might be a good complement to what they are building, while also helping to improve further the defense and ability to tilt the ice in their favor. It would also be interesting to see if getting an increased role outside of the microscope that is New York could help Kakko find more of his offensive game on a consistent basis.

The Blackhawks have their franchise superstar and key building block in Connor Bedard. They are going to get another one with the No. 2 overall pick. Now is the time to start building and adding talent. They need everything across the board.

They are also in a position where they might be able to take some chances and hope that a fresh start could spark something for a talented player like Kakko.

But even if he simply maintained his current level of play, the Blackhawks simply need more good players on their roster. And even if Kakko came in and scored 15-20 goals and played his consistent brand of hockey where he excels defensively and does the "little things," that would be a huge add to a roster that needs drastic improvements and players that do exactly that.

They have the salary-cap space. They have the need. It might be a solid situation for everybody involved.