New York Rangers: The pros and cons of trading for Evgeni Malkin
By Ed Stein
Cons part 2
One of the lingering question marks about Malkin, since he joined the league, is his attitude. Maybe that criticism is unjustified and a byproduct of the stereotype about Russian players. Then again, where there’s smoke, most often there’s fire. Reading some recent articles in the Pittsburgh press words like mercurial and uncoachable were used. He was -25 in 2018-19 and was often cited for not getting back on defense.
At one point last season Malkin was insubordinate to head coach Mike Sullivan. That disagreement centered around the scorer playing more of a two-way game, ie defensively responsible.
It seems that the former four-time All-NHL player was unwilling to make adjustments to his game in order to help the Pens win. David Quinn is a young coach, it’s hard to see Malkin changing for him.
Even factoring all the negatives in, there is still one more huge argument against trading for Malkin. What would the cost, aside from financial, be for the Rangers. Obviously one or both of Filip Chytl and Lias Anderson would be part of any trade. Also likely included would be one or more of defensemen Brady Skjei, K’Andre Miller, and/or Adam Fox. Then there are the draft picks that the Rangers would have to send the other way. In effect, the New York Rangers would be gutting their rebuild before it hits its stride.
All of what management had been preaching to the fans about patience and that they were building a team that would be formidable for an extended period, is out the window. The last season and a half of suffering through poor play and the departures of fan favorites would have been for nothing.