The Artemi Panarin saga is over as the New York Rangers have traded him to the Los Angeles Kings for prospect Liam Greentree and a conditional third round pick.
Coniditions on the 3rd-round pick heading to #NYR in the Artemi Panarin trade:
If the #LAKings win a playoff round this year, it becomes a 2nd-rounder
If the #LAKings win two playoff rounds this year, they also receive a 2028 4th-round pick
— Chris Johnston (@reporterchris) February 4, 2026
The Rangers are retaining 50 percent of Panarin’s salary $8 million salary. His cap hit was $11,642,857.
Shortly after the trade, the 34-year-old Panarin signed a two-year contract extension with the Kings for $22 million, an $11 million cap hit.
The Kings have acquired Artemi Panarin for Liam Greentree and a conditional third-round pick, league source confirms. @emilymkaplan and @AdamSchefter were first.
The Kings were the team Panarin's camp wanted to go to in the end, I'm told. No chance for a bidding war.
— Peter Baugh (@Peter_Baugh) February 4, 2026
Greentree was drafted 26th overall in the first round of the 2024 draft by the Kings. In 34 games with the Windsor Spitfires of the OHL, the 6′ 3″ forward has 23 goals and 22 assists.
Many teams were involved in the process, including the Washington Capitals, Florida Panthers, Detroit Red Wings, San Jose Sharks, Carolina Hurricanes, Dallas Stars, Colorado Avalanche, Vegas Golden Knights, Seattle Kraken, and Utah Mammoth. There were others who inquired but did not have a chance of trading for him, given that the player had a no-movement clause and controlled where he wanted to go.
There had been noise surrounding Artemi Panarin as he was held out of the lineup for trade-related reasons last week, ahead of a home-and-home series with the New York Islanders. The Rangers announced he would be out of the lineup for roster-related reasons up until the Olympic Roster Freeze on Wednesday, February 4th. It has been the goal from the player and team sides to get this done before the Roster Freeze.
However, this was a complicated deal with layers. The Rangers knew, going back to last summer, that Panarin wanted to test free agency in the summer of 2026. While they tried to negotiate a deal, they did not want to rush into an extension with a 34-year-old player seeking a four- or five-year deal at his current AAV of $11.7 million. The Rangers weren’t willing to do that.
We know the Rangers had high expectations this season of making the playoffs. But given his status as a pending unrestricted free agent, how the season played would determine everything for Panarin. Once GM Chris Drury sent out the letter informing the fans of a retool with fan favorites on the move, the writing was on the wall for a Panarin trade.
Since signing as a member of the New York Rangers in July 2019, Artemi Panarin has recorded 607 points (205 goals and 402 assists) in 482 games with the franchise. He averaged 1.26 points per game and recorded one final assist in a 4-3 comeback victory over the Boston Bruins on Madison Square Garden ice.
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