Francois Gagnon: Sources say the New York Rangers would be interested in acquiring Winnipeg Jets forward Pierre-Luc Dubois.
Rangers GM Chris Drury is very interested in Dubois and trade talks are ongoing.
Larry Brooks of the New York Post: Winnipeg Jets forward Pierre-Luc Dubois told the team he’ll be wanting to test unrestricted free agency in two years. He’s a pending UFA and is owed a $6.65 million qualifying offer.
Yes, the Rangers could use a second-line center, and that Dubois centered Artemi Panarin when they were in Columbus, but he’d be looking for a seven-year deal at over $50 million, something that would be real hard for the Rangers to fit in.
They could maybe find a way to fit him in, in the short term, but K’Andre Miller and Alexis Lafreniere will need new contracts next offseason and could take up $10 to $12 million.
The Jets would likely be interested in Rangers center Filip Chytil and his $2.3 million cap hit. Would the Rangers really want to move him without knowing that he can be a second-line or at least a solid No. 3 on a reasonable contract?
Given the cap implications and Chytil potential, now may not be the time to acquire Dubois.
Ken Wiebe of Sportsnet: While the Winnipeg Jets look to hire their next head coach, teams are calling them about forward Pierre-Luc Dubois.
Dubois has basically said he’s not ready to commit to the team long-term.
He’s been linked to the New York Rangers and will be getting interest from other teams around the league. The Rangers have also been linked to Mark Scheifele.
Any Jets talk with the Rangers will likely be about Filip Chytil, Alexis Lafreniere, Kaapo Kakko, Braden Schneider, and Nils Lundkvist.
Scheifele has two years left at $6.125 million.
The Montreal Canadiens would also have interest in Dubois.
The New York Rangers have interest in Pierre-Luc Dubois from the Winnipeg Jets per @GagnonFrancois. Dubois would be huge addition for the Rangers’ core in our eyes. He’s legit TOP6 center and the Rangers have a hole on 2C. This would make sense. pic.twitter.com/AasQ84oiyB
— Andy & Rono (@ARHockeyStats) June 29, 2022