Five Former Mike Sullivan Players the Rangers Could Target via Trade
Mike Sullivan isn’t the only familiar face the Rangers could bring in this offseason. Here are a few ex-Penguins who might follow their former coach to New York.
The New York Rangers are not only entering the off-season with a new head coach in Mike Sullivan. They are heading into it with an entirely new coaching staff—one that is quite similar to the coaching staff Sullivan had with him in Pittsburgh as recently as last season.
As a follow up to the free agents the Rangers could target who have previously played for Mike Sullivan and the Pittsburgh Penguins, we’re going to explore some current and former Penguins the Rangers could potentially look to acquire on the trade market. That’s not to suggest the Rangers should go out of their way to make any of these moves. But if they want to get Sullivan some more of his guys, here's who they should consider.
Teddy Blueger
The Rangers have plenty of fourth line centers to go around, but at his best Teddy Blueger could be a lower cost third line center option. I was really high on Blueger before he signed his two-year deal with Vancouver and wanted the Rangers to sign him then. If you recall from the Rangers playoff series with the Penguins back in 2022, Blueger was a really valuable center under Mike Sullivan and is great in the faceoff circle. He went on to help the Vegas Golden Knights win a Stanley Cup the following year and has since averaged 27 points across two seasons with the Vancouver Canucks.
Is Blueger a realistic option on the trade market? Your guess is as good as mine considering it’s a borderline mystery what Jim Rutherford’s plan really is in Vancouver. Nonetheless, he’s a player Chris Drury and the Rangers should certainly keep an eye on. In an ideal world, he’s more of a fourth line center on a Cup contending team and, as mentioned, the Rangers are well stocked in that area. Although, considering the success he had under Mike Sullivan, perhaps there’s a world where he can be effective for the Rangers in a third line role.
Projected Trade Concept: As mentioned, the Rangers have too many fourth liners, so maybe they decide to sell high on Sam Carrick and attach a draft pick to acquire Blueger.
