Jeff Gorton says that the Rangers can’t trade their first round pick every year

November 18th, 2015 6:39 pm

Prior to the season, Jeff Gorton was asked about the Rangers recent history of trading their first round pick to acquire proven/veteran players. (ESPN Insider)
The Rangers traded their:

• 2013 first round pick to acquire Rick Nash
• 2014 first round pick to acquire Marty St. Louis

• 2015 first round pick to acquire Marty St. Louis. (Was originally a second round pick that became a first round pick when the Rangers reached the 2014 Eastern Conference Final)
• 2016 first round pick to acquire Keith Yandle. (Becomes a 2017 first round pick if the Rangers miss the playoffs.

Gorton said that “everybody knows we can’t do that every year.”  (ESPN Insider)
He said that it was worth it for the Rangers to make the deals they did, saying “we got good players, we tried to win, came close and that’s what happened.” (ESPN Insider)

Gorton said that the players with the highest success rate of playing in the NHL are drafted in the first round. (ESPN Insider)

He added that the Rangers are hoping to get over the edge and win without it costing them “down the road.” (ESPN Insider)