The NY Rangers are shopping a Cam Talbot trade for draft picks at the NHL draft and teams like the Florida Panthers, Calgary Flames, Edmonton Oilers, Buffalo Sabres, Dallas Stars and san Jose Sharks are potential options for the backup goalie, as he stepped up with Henrik Lundqvist injured and now could net New York a high draft pick or top prospect in a deal.
The Rangers have been expected to trade Talbot this offseason, as the team gave up high draft picks and prospects for Martin St. Louis and Keith Yandle in trades over the past two seasons. Last season Talbot stepped up with Lundqvist out with an injury and led the Rangers to one of the best streaks in franchise history. The strong play of Talbot helped the team win the top seed in the NHL and now Glen Sather could look at trading him for a top pick. UPDATE: Talbot has been traded to the Oilers for picks.
According to Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman, the Florida Panthers, Calgary Flames, Edmonton Oilers, Dallas Stars and San Jose Sharks are in the mix for Talbot. The report says that those teams are "allowed to talk" to the goaltender about how he would fit with a new team and what he thinks about each city. The teams are not allowed to talk money with Talbot because of the CBA and he can't sign an extension until January of next year. While that may hurt the trade value for Talbot, the Rangers are still looking to get a first or second round pick for the goalie.
The Rangers window to win a Cup is closing with Lundqvist and while Talbot could be a strong backup, the team is likely better off getting value for him with a trade. According to Larry Brooks of the New York Post and Steve Zipay of Newsday, the Rangers are looking for at least a second round draft pick and/or a high quality prospect in any deal for Talbot. The Panthers reportedly are one of the top options, while the Flames are considered the favorites, according to Katie Strang at ESPN.
Talbot is 27 already, but he had a great season with a 21-9-4 record and he showed he could handle being the number one, at least for a limited amount of time. Talbot was strong with a 2.21 G.A.A. and a .926 save percentage in 36 appearances and he comes in with a $1.45 million salary and then will be an unrestricted free agent. Bob McKenzie at TSN reports that the Rangers will wait and see what the best deal is and they have offers of two second round picks for Talbot and another offer that includes a first round pick.
The Rangers went after Keith Yandle this year and that is why they don't have a first round pick and this all is coming as the team has to sign back Derek Stepan this offseason as well. The team reportedly is not bringing back Martin St. Louis after two seasons of having him and he was one of the players the team traded picks for. The Rangers made it to the Cup once with St. Louis and they had a disappointing run this year after losing against the Lightning in the east finals despite being the best team in the NHL by points.
