Rumors had surrounded Vladimir Tarasenko for days leading into a Thursday’s trade between the New York Rangers and St. Louis Blues. In fact, the trade discussion dated all the way back to two years ago when the winger asked to be moved out of St. Louis, but a trade never materialized. As Tarasenko was approaching the end of this season, the Blues were selling and both sides were likely to move on, a trade made the most sense.

Tarsenko told the media after arriving in New York that there was an opportunity to potentially re-sign in St. Louis, but an offer was never made. He thanked the Blues for his many years and for making a nice home for him and his family, but he says he’s now got a new home. He’s also hoping that his long-time friendship with Artemi Panarin will translate into chemistry on the ice and that he can help the Rangers make a push in this season’s NHL playoff race.

The official deal saw Tarasenko (50% retained salary) and defenseman Niko Mikkola go to the Rangers in exchange for forward Sammy Blais, defenseman Hunter Skinner, a 2023 1st-round pick (NYR), and a 2024 4th-round pick (both conditional).

As per Emily Kaplan of ESPN and Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic, both sides wanted to get this deal done as quickly as possible. Kaplan writes, “According to sources, the Rangers targeted Tarasenko – a player they long coveted – and decided to go for it after feeling the asking prices for Timo Meier and Patrick Kane were too high.” She added, “It doesn’t sound like the Rangers got to asking price point of discussions with Blackhawks – because the ball is still in Patrick Kane’s court coming to Chicago with what he wants to do.” She adds, “But the NYR didn’t want to wait on him, and also had concerns about his hip.”

Meanwhile, LeBrun notes the Blues had made it clear to other NHL GMs that the team was open to do business well ahead of the trade deadline. LeBrun adds, “The other smart thing the Blues did here is getting a Tarasenko trade done as soon as possible. The added complication of having the player sign off on his no-trade is not something you want to stickhandle around March 3. So many things can go wrong that day. There have been potential trades undone by that very thing at past deadlines.”

Did The Rangers Make The Right Call?

Prioritizing a quick deal for Tarasenko and putting any idea of Patrick Kane in the rearview mirror will be an intriguing storyline to watch. Did the Blues make the right call? They gave up a lot to acquire Tarasenko, including a first-round pick. Will they try to sign the winger if he finds immediate chemistry? Will Tarasenko be willing to stick around on a team-friendly contract?

And, where will Kane go now? Will he accept a trade out of Chicago and if the Rangers were on his radar, what team will he look at as Plan B?

Next: Blackhawks Show Kane, Toews List of Interested Trade Partners