Chris Kreider sent a message to Chris Drury and the New York Rangers. By signing in Montreal with Jeff Gorton, and the news now that Kreider reached out to Montreal, not the other way around, Kreider sent a message to the Rangers that Drury is a problem. While reaching out to and signing with Montreal is likely deeper than just sending a message to the Rangers, Montreal is good with a great coach, it’s hard to ignore what’s right in front of us.
To be clear, Kreider was never coming back to the Rangers. The Rangers didn’t have the roster space, they didn’t have the cap space, and bringing in a 35 year old Kreider is not the direction the club was going. Montreal is a great fit. They are on the rise, need some playoff experience, and would certainly benefit from a guy whose entire career has been built off clutch goals in the playoffs.
It’s not that he signed with Montreal, which is objectively hilarious given the Carey Price thing, it’s that Kreider initiated the conversation and initiated signing the contract. Generally speaking, that’s rare. Teams reach out to players, not the other way around. Kreider sent a message to the Rangers that he’s going back to a GM that–in his mind–treats players fairly and with more respect. The discourse around the Rangers has been the polar opposite lately, especially with how Kreider, Jacob Trouba, and Barclay Goodrow were treated before they were moved.
Now there are always two sides to a story. Kreider played hurt in his final year and he was part of an old guard that was most certainly upset at the way Drury was managing things. Kreider didn’t quit on the Rangers, despite what many said at the time and continue to say. But playing hurt and openly stating it certainly impacted his ability to fetch a good trade return. There’s also the leadership aspect, as Kreider was supposed to help unite the team.
We don’t know what happened in the locker room and with Drury. But remember that multiple things can be true at the same time. It can be true that Kreider sent a message to the Rangers about how Drury runs things and it can also be true that Montreal was a good destination. It can be true that Drury isn’t liked by players and that Kreider’s leadership can be questioned. These aren’t mutually exclusive concepts and the reality is likely in the grey, not the black and white.
I do believe Kreider sent a message to the Rangers that Drury is a problem. It’s not entirely something new, as this has been discussed ad nauseam. It does make you wonder, given all the bad press including this potential message from Kreider, if Quentin Dolan is watching.
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