Top Landing Spots for Rangers Winger Kaapo Kakko Amid NHL Trade Rumors

The 2024 NHL trade deadline is a month away and the rumors are really starting to heat up. One of the more intriguing names that has been discussed in recent weeks has been New York Rangers forward Kaapo Kakko.

TSN's Darren Dreger reported on Jan. 31 that the Rangers are willing to field calls on the 22-year-old, fueling speculation that he could be on the move.

The Rangers desperately need more scoring depth, especially during 5-on-5 play, and Kakko could be an intriguing asset to dangle as bait. It is also a sign that the team could be tired of waiting for the 2019 No. 2 overall pick to have a breakout performance.

Now five years into his career, the Finn has scored just 49 goals with 104 total points in 268 career games. He has never scored more than 18 goals in a season and has reached 40 points just once. That includes just five goals and six total points in 29 games this season.

Injuries, inconsistent usage and general inconsistency have all played a role in that production. No matter what the Rangers decide to do before the deadline, one thing seems clear: Kakko is heading toward a crossroads in his New York career.

With those rumors in mind, let's take a look at some of the top potential landing spots for him ahead of the NHL trade deadline on March 8.

This might go against the spirit of a "trade destination" piece, but the most sensible and logical destination might simply be staying put.

First, the Rangers don't have to trade Kakko. He is still under team control after this season (restricted free agent), and even though his offensive numbers have not been great, he still does a lot of things well on the ice.

He consistently posts some of the best possession and scoring chance differential numbers on the team, and New York isn't really in a position to be subtracting players like that from its lineup unless it's getting something significant back in return.

Which leads us to the second point.

As intriguing as Kakko might be as a trade chip for a team hoping to get the most out of him, his trade value might be at an all-time low right now. His production offensively is way down, even from what he has shown over the first four years of his career, and any team that trades for him will have to make an RFA decision after the season. It's not the best time to be dangling him in trade offers.

Would the Rangers really get back the type of offer they want and one that would make them better in the short and long term? That's debatable.

The most logical path here might be to keep Kakko, allow him to do what he does best in driving possession and hope that he finally has that breakout year offensively by the end of this season or the start of next.

If he doesn't, then they can move on.

Let's put together an idea for a hypothetical blockbuster.

The Senators have been a major disappointment this season and are almost certainly going to be sellers going into the deadline. They also have a couple of intriguing trade chips that might be of interest to the Rangers, including veteran forward Vladimir Tarasenko and defenseman Jakob Chychrun.

Tarasenko was a mostly successful trade-deadline acquisition for New York a year ago and could help give the team the type of goal-scoring depth it needs on the wings. As a pending free agent, he seems a strong possibility to go somewhere over the next month.

There's also a chance the Senators might be looking to deal Chychrun just one year after acquiring him due to concerns over his long-term fit and willingness to re-sign in Ottawa. While it's not as pressing a need as forward depth, the Rangers could use a left-shot defenseman who can play in their top four.

We have made this suggestion before, but why not put together a significant package and try to get both in one deal? The Rangers get two significant players who could fill major needs. The Senators would get Kakko as part of the deal to help improve their own forward depth, and the Finnish star can get a fresh start in a new city and on a new team.

It might be the best possible outcome for everybody if a trade did happen.

The Anaheim Ducks should not only be sellers at the deadline, but they also have a couple of players who could make a big impact for the Rangers in center Adam Henrique and winger Frank Vatrano.

Vatrano was a trade-deadline acquisition for New York two years and was an excellent fit in its lineup. The team could certainly use somebody with his finishing ability once again.

The Rangers should also be in the center market now that Filip Chytil is out for the season, and Henrique—a pending unrestricted free agent—is now the best potential rental option available after Elias Lindholm and Sean Monahan were traded.

It would be a tough sell for the Rangers to deal Kakko straight up for a rental like Henrique, but Vatrano still has one year remaining on his contract after this season and only counts $3.6 million against the salary cap. He is also a proven 20-goal scorer who would provide an immediate boost to the lineup.

Maybe that's a potential match as part of a larger deal?

If the Rangers did not include Kappo in a larger trade like the Chychrun-Tarasenko suggestion, their trade options might be a little more limited.

If they decided to put him on the market on his own, his value might be limited to another team's version of him: A young player with upside who has struggled to put everything together in the NHL.

The Los Angeles Kings, who are pretty much the Western Conference version of the Rangers, have quite a few players who fit that description.

Like Arthur Kaliyev. Or, to a lesser extent, Alex Turcotte.

The Rangers and Kings both look like teams that need a shakeup right now, and they both have talented young players who might need a new environment and a fresh start.

Maybe this is a situation where they can swap disappointing young forwards in the hopes both can rediscover their form elsewhere.

Chicago would present a similar situation to the Los Angeles suggestion: A swap of young players looking for a new environment.

In this case, it would be 2020 first-round pick Lukas Reichel.

The 21-year-old is far less accomplished than Kakko at the NHL level, so a one-for-one swap wouldn't do the Rangers any good, but it could be the foundation of an offer with the Blackhawks throwing in another sweetener, even if it's a draft asset that New York could flip in another deal for immediate help.

Chicago is in the early stages of a rebuild and needs to accumulate as much talent as possible around Connor Bedard. It's also in a position where it can afford to take some chances on players.

The Blackhawks' forward depth chart around the 2023 No. 1 pick is extremely thin, and Kakko could get an opportunity to play a top-line role and be one of the team's go-to players.