Jacob Trouba and Kaapo Kakko are gone. Who's next on the Rangers' trade board?

The New York Rangers have traded their captain and the 2019 No.

2 pick in the past two weeks.

Nothing has been able to stop their slide from being a contender for the Metro Division to a team with less than a 30 percent chance to make the playoffs, and general manager Chris Drury still has an appetite to keep changing his roster by clearing bodies and cap space.

Advertisement Drurys team, which faces the host Dallas Stars on Friday, hasnt responded to any of the threats of change or the actual changes so far.

Friday will be the Rangers first game without Kaapo Kakko , dealt to the Seattle Kraken on Wednesday.

Friday is also the start of the eight-day NHL holiday roster freeze, so theres nothing doing for the Rangers at least through the holiday.

But unless things can turn around, this team is headed back into the draft lottery a place the Rangers thought theyd exited for a long while after Drury took over and the Rangers made a surprise run to the Eastern Conference final in 2021 and 22.

That means Drury is going to keep looking for chances to move players out before the March 7 trade deadline and possibly into the offseason.

So who might be next? Most likely to be moved Jimmy Vesey : The 31-year-old depth forward missed the start of the season and has played just 17 of 31 games without the impact he had in a 13-goal season a year ago.

Moving Vesey wont impact the Rangers much, since hes signed a pending unrestricted free agent and the return wouldnt be more than a fourth or fifth-round pick.

But that would open up a bottom-six spot for a younger player.

A league source said Vesey has been shopped around pretty much since Drurys trade text went out on Nov.

24.

Ryan Lindgren : Perhaps Drury will hold onto Lindgren and make a move closer to March 7 to maximize the return, but it certainly appears that the 26-year-old is nearing the end of his Rangers tenure.

Hes been a heart-and-soul player during his five-year Rangers run, but the broken jaw he suffered in a preseason fight plus the teams ever-worsening defense have combined to make Lindgren a shadow of what he was as a Ranger.

The Tampa Bay Lightning just lost young left-handed defenseman J.J.

Moser for two months, so that could be a good landing spot for Lindgren.

Advertisement Reilly Smith : The veteran forward was brought in to provide some maturity and skill in the top six, but like a lot of Rangers plans so far, it hasnt gone that way.

The Rangers gave up a 2027 second-rounder for Smith this summer; if they want something similar in return, they would likely have to take a pick in a similar, far-off draft.

The 33-year-old Smith has 15 points in 30 games, so it hasnt been all negative.

He could still help a contender and the Rangers should be willing to retain some salary on the $3.75 million cap hit Smith carries.

William Borgen: He just got here, I know.

But the 28-year-old right-handed defenseman would have been a deadline trade chip for Seattle had he stayed there; unless Borgen, whos a pending UFA on a $2.7 million cap hit, helps turn the Rangers around, he could easily be flipped in the coming months for a second-rounder.

Contending teams love to load up on defensemen and the 4 Nations tournament break in February will give general managers lots of time to consider their options.

Less likely, but still possible KAndre Miller : If the Rangers are in full-sell mode and want to particularly reimagine their defense corps, Miller will surely be on the block and of interest.

Hes a pending restricted free agent looking for a big raise off the $3.872 million cap hit he has, but his play this season, with just six points in 28 games (and currently on injured reserve) doesnt scream $50 million deal.

If he puts it all together the way he started to two seasons ago, therell be some major regrets in the Rangers front office, but Drury may believe he can find a similar, top-four defenseman whos more consistent.

Filip Chytil : Might be our favorite guy on their roster, one Western Conference executive told me last week, but too many concerns.

Chytils concussion history could certainly scare off any potential suitors, but hes going to be stuck as the No.

3 center/No.

2 power-play member indefinitely here and would have more value elsewhere.

Hes locked in for two more years at a very reasonable $4.437 million cap hit.

If a team wants to take a chance, the return may not be so hot, and that could keep Drury from making such a move.

Zac Jones : The 24-year-old left-handed defenseman is just getting his first real shot at consistent playing time, and its not going that well.

Hes a pending RFA making less than a million so theres not a lot of incentive to move him, even if he may not figure in the teams future plans.

Advertisement Chris Kreider : Yes, hes No.

1 on The Athletic s big trade board, but unless Drury is adamant about moving on from the closest thing the Rangers have to a lifer which would mean essentially dumping Kreider for little return, since theres probably not a robust market for a 33-year-old whos got two years at $6.5 million left then I think Kreider stays.

Friends say it means something to Kreider to retire a Ranger, even if hes part of the core that the GM wants to radically change.

If things continue to deteriorate this season Kreiders spot on this board may change, but for now, he definitely wants to be here forever.

Even less likely, but you never know Mika Zibanejad : The odds against a Zibanejad trade are massive, almost as massive as the five years left on his contract.

But his minutes are dwindling and his season is a mess; Drury would likely be eager to find a trade partner if Zibanejad were willing to waive his no-move clause.

Theres been no indication thats a possibility.

If it comes to that if Zibanejad, one of the more thoughtful players around, sees the writing on the wall and decides hed rather be somewhere else, its still an incredibly difficult fit for any other team.

Going nowhere Basically everyone else on the regular roster is a lock.

Jonathan Quick could conceivably ask to be moved for a shot at a fourth Stanley Cup, but hes pretty settled in his home area.

Igor Shesterkin had a chance to test the waters but locked in for eight more years.

Alexis Lafreniere is similarly locked in.

Artemi Panarin and Vincent Trocheck are important pieces.

Will Cuylle , Brett Berard and Adam Edstrom are part of the future up front.

Same goes for Adam Fox , Braden Schneider and Victor Mancini.

Things will be quiet until the roster freeze lifts on Dec.

27.

After that, unless this Rangers team somehow turns things around, the chaos is likely to resume.

(Photo of Ryan Lindgren, KAndre Miller and Filip Chytil: Elsa / Getty Images).

This article has been shared from the original article on theathleticuk, here is the link to the original article.