Kaapo Kakko is the newest member of the Seattle Kraken.
The New York Rangers traded the number two overall draft selection in the 2019 NHL Draft to the Seattle Kraken for defenseman Will Borgen, a 2025 third-round pick, and a 2025 sixth-round pick. Kakko is the second Rangers player to be dealt away during the team’s struggles this season, following Jacob Trouba 12 days ago.
#NYR have acquired defenseman Will Borgen, a 2025 Third-Round pick and a 2025 Sixth-Round pick in exchange for Kaapo Kakko. pic.twitter.com/4OTAZWuFBs
— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) December 19, 2024
The move comes just a day after Kakko publicly questioned why head coach Peter Laviolette chose him to be a healthy scratch in a game against the St. Louis Blues. Kakko posited that Laviolette decided to scratch him solely because, at 23, he is one of the younger players on the club’s roster.
New York lost 3-2 to the Blues in the game that Kakko sat out. He returned to the lineup for their next game against the Nashville Predators but played a team-low 10:14 in the 2-0 defeat.
Kakko has 14 points (4g, 10a) in 30 games this season. The Rangers have been relatively good at five-on-five with him on the ice, seeing 50.9 percent of the expected goals and 51.2 percent of the high-danger chances.
The young Finnish forward holds a $2.4 million cap hit this season before becoming a restricted free agent in the summer. His single-season high in points is 40 (18g, 22a), set during the 2022-23 campaign.
Borgen is a veteran of 247 NHL games split between the Kraken and Buffalo Sabres. The 28-year-old rearguard has featured in 33 games for Seattle this season, recording two points (1g, 1a).
The Minnesota native costs $2.7 million against the cap this season. He is an unrestricted free agent in the offseason.
Borgen’s arrival led the Rangers to send down defenseman Victor Mancini. To replace Kakko up front, they recalled enforcer Matt Rempe.
UPDATE: Matt Rempe has been recalled from the Hartford Wolf Pack and Victor Mancini has been assigned to the Hartford Wolf Pack.
— NY Rangers PR (@NYR_PR) December 19, 2024
