The New York Rangers beat the Olympic roster freeze deadline and traded the biggest player in their retool, with Artemi Panarin heading to the Los Angeles Kings.
In return, the Rangers receive forward Liam Greentree and conditional third-round (2026) and fourth-round (2028) picks, the Kings announced. The Rangers retain half of Panarin’s salary, and he received a two-year extension from Los Angeles with an $11 million cap hit.
The struggling Rangers had sent a letter to fans that that they were going to retool their roster and that it might mean saying ‘goodbye to players that have brought us and our fans great moments over the years.’
Panarin was told that the team would not be offering him a contract extension. He was in the final year of a seven-year contract averaging $11.6 million and had a full no-movement clause. Last week, they held him out of the lineup to prevent him from getting hurt as they worked out a trade.
Here are grades for the Los Angeles Kings and New York Rangers in the Artemi Panarin trade:
Los Angeles Kings: B+
The Kings need offense, ranking 28th in the league, and Panarin provides plenty, leading the Rangers every year in scoring since he arrived as a free agent in 2019. Even in a down year, he has 57 points in 52 games. Los Angeles is third in goals-against average, so a little extra boost on the scoring side could translate to more wins. That’s important with the Kings sitting one point out of a playoff spot and trying to go on a postseason run in captain Anze Kopitar’s final year. Getting the 34-year-old signed for another two years will help the Kings after Kopitar retires.
New York Rangers: C
Panarin was the Rangers’ best trade asset and the return seems low. Greentree is 20, 6-foot-3, 216 pounds and was a 2024 first-round pick. He had 119 points last season with the Windsor (Ontario) Spitfires. But there was no first-round pick in the deal. The third-rounder can move to a second if the Kings win a playoff round and a fourth-rounder comes into play if they win two rounds. Panarin had to choose where he went, so that limited the Rangers’ options. Also hurting their return: New York made clear it was moving him and he was a pending unrestricted free agent.
Devils acquire Nick Bjugstad
The New Jersey Devils acquired bottom-six forward Nick Bjugstad from the St. Louis Blues for forward Thomas Bordeleau and a conditional fourth-round pick.
