New York Rangers veteran forward Chris Kreider’s name has often been a fixture in trade rumors in recent years. Now, with his future with the Blueshirts as uncertain as ever, he’s doubling down on where he wants to play his hockey.
“This is home for me,” Kreider said during the Rangers’ locker cleanout day. “This is the organization that gave me an opportunity to live out my dream. So obviously this is where I want to be and this is the group that I want to help in whatever fashion.”
The 33-year-old has two years remaining on his contract with an AAV of $6.5 million — a deal that has quickly devolved from a serious bargain after his previous three seasons consisted of a franchise-record 52, 36, and 39 goals.
A lingering back issue was the surface issue that appeared to derail the 2024-25 season. He had a career-worst 30 points (22 goals, 8 assists) in 68 games.
On Monday, though, Kreider revealed that he suffered a significant hand injury during a February game against the Buffalo Sabres that is expected to require surgery this offseason. He also encountered a virus that led to vertigo throughout the season.
“Just a bunch of weird, fluky things this year,” Kreider said.
All the while, he had to compete while knowing that his name was included in general manager Chris Drury’s trade memo which was sent to the other 31 NHL GMs back in November while the Rangers were floundering.
They managed to offload notable names like ex-captain Jacob Trouba, disgruntled forward Kaapo Kakko, and blue-liner Ryan Lindgren, though it did little to spark a team that had won the Presidents’ Trophy and made the Eastern Conference Final last season.
The Rangers have already been busy in the first few days of their offseason after missing the playoffs. Drury fired head coach Peter Laviolette after just two seasons, making him the third bench boss to be canned in the last five years.
More changes seem certain to come, and Kreider’s name will be near the very top of that prospective list.
