With less than a week left before the trade deadline, the Avalanche have added some extra depth on the back end and up front. In a deal that has been announced by both teams, Colorado is acquiring defenseman Ryan Lindgren, winger Jimmy Vesey, and the rights to unsigned prospect Hank Kempf from the Rangers in exchange for forward Juuso Parssinen, defenseman Calvin de Haan, and two draft picks. The picks are the better of Carolina’s or New York’s (previously-acquired) second-round pick this year and the better of Colorado’s or Vancouver’s fourth-round selection this season.
Lindgren has been a mainstay on New York’s back end for the last six seasons. However, his tenure with them has always seemed to be on uncertain footing. He wound up taking a three-year bridge deal back in 2021 with the expectation that he’d sign a longer-term pact after that. Instead, he found himself in trade speculation at times during that contract and the two sides were only able to work out a one-year, $4.5MM contract last summer, one that avoided salary arbitration but also set Lindgren up to reach unrestricted free agency this summer. Mollie Walker of the New York Post reports (Twitter link) that the Rangers will retain half of that contract as part of the swap.
The 27-year-old has never been a big point producer in the NHL as he has yet to reach the 20-point mark in a single season although with 19 points in 54 games this season, he’s likely to do just that in the coming days. However, Lindgren has been a steady and reliable defensive defender for most of his career, logging heavy minutes on the penalty kill and consistently being among the Rangers’ leaders in blocked shots. This season, he’s second on New York in blocked shots with 102 while leading the team in shorthanded TOI at 2:42 per game.
That penalty killing prowess will fit in well on a Colorado shorthanded unit that’s barely above the league average in success rate at 79.8% while also giving them a solid replacement for the injured Josh Manson. Lindgren should slot in as the fourth defender on the Avs’ depth chart for the time being while when Manson returns, one of the two should help anchor the third pairing which would be a nice boost to that pairing heading into the playoffs.
As for Vesey, the 31-year-old was in the third season of his second go-round in New York. The first two seasons of that second stint were successful as he notched 24 goals and 51 points over the two years, giving the Rangers some solid, low-cost secondary scoring. But things haven’t gone as well this season. He has been frequently scratched and has just six points in 31 games when he has suited up. Nonetheless, Colorado has been looking for some stability on the fourth line pretty much all season long and Vesey should be able to lock down a regular role on that trio while giving it some experience as he’s suited up in over 600 games at the NHL level. He’s also a pending unrestricted free agent this summer, carrying a $800K cap charge.
Kempf, meanwhile, was a seventh-round pick by the Rangers back in 2021, going 208th overall. The blueliner is in his senior year at Cornell University and has two goals and five assists in 28 games this season. Colorado will need to sign him to an entry-level deal by mid-August or lose his rights.
Parssinen is the more notable player heading to the Rangers in this swap. It will be the third team for him this season as Colorado only acquired him from Nashville back in late December. But while the 24-year-old was able to hold down a regular role with the Avs (after being scratched at times with the Predators), he wasn’t overly productive with just six points in 22 games while logging less than 10 minutes a night of ice time. When added to his numbers with the Preds, Parssinen has four goals and seven assists in 37 appearances this season.
Parssinen made an immediate strong impression when he first debuted in the NHL back in 2022-23, notching an impressive 25 points in 45 games in Nashville but he hasn’t been able to get back to that level of performance since then. He’ll now get another fresh start in New York who can control him through the 2027-28 season through restricted free agency with salary arbitration rights. Parssinen is making the league minimum of $775K this season and will be owed a qualifying offer of nearly $814K in late June.
As for de Haan, the 33-year-old was in his first season with Colorado after signing a one-year, $800K contract with them early in free agency last summer. He has largely played on the third pairing this year, logging just under 15 minutes a night of playing time while chipping in with seven assists, 58 blocks, and 59 hits in 44 appearances. A pending UFA, the 676-game veteran is likely to have a similar role in New York but also could be a candidate to be flipped again if there’s a team looking for extra defensive depth before Friday’s trade deadline.
The Rangers enter play today four points out of the final Wild Card spot. While that’s hardly an insurmountable gap, they’re also not in a spot to potentially lose rental players for no return. With this move, they pick up a pair of draft picks and will get a look to see if Parssinen can return to his form from a couple of years ago which could make him a piece worth keeping around for a while. Meanwhile, Lindgren is a nice pickup for the Avs even with his struggles this season as he should be able to help stabilize the back half of their back end which should only help their fortunes heading into the playoffs.
Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman was the first to report (Twitter links) the four players in the deal while Peter Baugh of The Athletic was first with the draft pick details.
Photo courtesy of Imagn Images.