The New York Rangers made a splash hours before yesterday’s draft, trading center Derek Stepan and goaltender Antti Raanta to the Arizona Coyotes in exchange for the seventh overall pick and defenseman Anthony DeAngelo.
Raanta, 28, was Henrik Lundqvist’s backup between the pipes for the last two seasons and surely proved himself with stellar numbers. In the 2016-17 season, the Finnish goaltender started thirty games, in which he went 16-8-2 with a 2.26 goals against average. According to Rangers general manager Jeff Gorton, the Coyotes had been eyeing Raanta for a while, and the Coyotes say that he will be their number one man in net.
Stepan, 27, has been with the Rangers since 2010. He put up very impressive numbers throughout his career, and last year, he was just two off his career high in points with 55 (17 goals, 38 assists). While Stepan made his name widely known in New York City since the very beginning, most Rangers fans remember his overtime, game-winning goal against the Washington Capitals in the 2015 playoffs to push his team to the Eastern Conference Finals.
Meanwhile, Anthony DeAngelo is a 21-year-old right-handed defenseman out of Sewell, New Jersey. He mentioned on his social media account that he is excited to get started with his new team.
Stepan and Raanta return to Madison Square Garden for the first time with Arizona on October 26th. Derek Stepan and Antti Raanta will surely be missed in New York, but their contributions will never be forgotten.
[…] the trades of Derek Stepan and Antti Raanta, as well as buying out Dan Girardi’s contract, the New York Rangers had plenty of wiggle room […]