The New York Rangers are currently in the eighth playoff spot and tied with the Islanders as the postseason approaches and the team has some major decisions to make at the deadline, including whether to trade star Marian Gaborik.
According to ESPN.com, Gaborik could be one of the major moves of the trade deadline, as he has been having a down season after the Rangers were the number one team in the East last year. The team has had issues playing consistently all season and is tied with the Islanders with 37 points on the year after getting off to a rough start.
Gaborik was one of the team's top scoring threats last season, but after getting shoulder surgery he looks less than 100 percent and the team is ranked last in goals per game in the NHL. While trading one of the team's top scorers seems like a bad idea in that case, it could pay off if the team gets some younger talent in return.
Gaborik has scored 40 goals three times, but this season he has been moved around the lines very often and has just nine goals in 31 games this season. After signing a big contract with the team he has one year left and a no trade clause, but he could waive it if the team finds a suitable option. The Rangers have needs at forward and defense and the team could try to send him to the Sharks for Dan Boyle, who would give the team some much needed support.
The team got Rick Nash in the offseason in a deal and they could use Boyle as an offensive weapon as a defender on the blue line. The team has struggled to score goals at an alarming rate and a trade could shake some life into the Rangers. Sharks' forward Ryane Clowe could be an option, but he is being pursued by the Bruins and the flyers.
The Rangers put in a solid 4-2 win at home on Monday against the Jets to possibly stave off any trades from Glen Sather was Wednesday approaches, but the team needs to start playing more consistently if they want to make any noise in the playoffs. The scoring issues were in full force in the previous two games, as the team was shut out in back t0 back contests.
The Rangers lost out on any chance at getting Jay Bouwmeester, as he is now on the Blues, while Boyle is the top option on the defense along with Jamie McBain of the Hurricanes. The team is chasing the Penguins and they got stronger by adding Brendan Morrow and Jarome Iginla ahead of Wednesday.
The Rangers are ranked 30th in the NHL in scoring and are just 25th in power play percentage with 14.3. The team has been solid in net while ranking sixth in goals against, but the penalty kill is lacking at 17th in the NHL and the scoring has been wildly inconsistent.
