The question of whether or not the Oilers will lend Ryan Smyth to a contending team for the last few months of the 2011-12 season is one of the items worth keeping an eye on as the trade deadline approaches, and today New York Post writer Larry Brooks added some fuel to the fire when he said that Smyth might well accept a trade to the New York Rangers:

If Rangers general manager Glen Sather is interested in reuniting with Ryan Smyth by acquiring Edmonton’s veteran left wing to bolster the attack, the feeling may well be a reciprocal one, The Post has learned.

A well-placed source told The Post that Smyth, who was drafted sixth overall in 1994 by Sather and then played the first five years under his direction while he was general manager of the Oilers, would give serious consideration to waiving his no-move clause in order to pursue a Cup on Broadway.

Brooks plays up the relationship between Smyth and Rangers general manager Glen Sather, the man at the helm of the franchise when the Oilers drafted Smyth back in 1994. Would that relationship, and the fact that the Rangers are a legitimate contender right now, be enough to persuade Smyth to waive his no trade clause and pursue a Stanley Cup this season? Perhaps, though ultimately that’s known only to Smyth. It is something the Oilers should ask him as the deadline approaches, so that general manager Steve Tambellini is aware of his options.

Smyth could be an interesting fit with the Rangers, with Brooks identifying two key items: the first being that Smyth could be a boon to the power play, the second being that the Rangers would need to clear cap space.

According to CapGeek, the Rangers would be able to take on a cap hit of roughly $5.5 million at the NHL trade deadline, a little shy of Smyth’s $6.25 million hit, so money would need to go the other way in any deal. This is especially true if Sather wants to shore up other areas of his Eastern Conference-leading Rangers. Fortunately, there’s an obvious solution to that in the person of Wojtek Wolski, an expensive pending RFA who just might fit in with the Oilers’ long-term plans anyway. Presumably, any Smyth trade would see the Rangers shed Wolski’s salary, with the most likely exchange seeing the struggling forward join the Oilers for the remainder of the year.

While the addition of Wolski might serve as a boon to the Oilers, given his cap hit he probably has negative value right now, which only increases the return Tambellini should be able to land in a Smyth trade with New York.

As it stands, this is of course all hypothetical, but it certainly seems like a deal could be made that would work for all sides. A trade of this sort would add assets to the Oilers rebuild, give a Cup contender a valuable veteran who can play anywhere in the lineup, and perhaps give Smyth a shot at landing his first Stanley Cup. All that, and given his UFA status this summer, the Oilers should be able to bring Smyth back in the veteran/mentor role next season.

Update: The Rangers have pulled off a minor deal, sending Erik Christensen and a conditional draft pick to Minnesota in exchange for prospect Casey Wellman. In addition to adding a legitimate prospect for a guy they didn’t have room for, the Rangers have shaved off a little more cap space, clearing the remaining hit from Christensen’s $925,000 contract, which should total $320,000 in new cap space (they add nothing, as Wellman was assigned to the AHL). That still leaves the Rangers a little short of the required space to add Smyth, but every little bit helps.

The Math: Figuring out how much cap space the Rangers have is a tricky proposition, but it is doable. The NHL calculates cap space based on days of the season rather than games played. The trade deadline is February 27, 145 days into a 185-day season. Since Smyth’s cap hit is $6.25 million, this means a team needs a little over $1.35 million in salary cap space to add him to their team ($6.25 million x 40 days / 185 days). The Rangers, prior to the Christensen trade, had a little over $550,000 in actual cap space left, after projecting their current contracts over the rest of the season. The Christensen trade took place 121 days into the season, with 64 days remaining, meaning that the Rangers now have an extra $320,000 or so in cap space ($925,000 x 64 days / 185 days). That gives the Rangers roughly $870,000 in cap space at the trade deadline, enough to take on a contract worth a little north of $4.o million per year. In other words, this helps, but it isn’t enough by itself to clear space for Smyth – the Rangers would still need to dump salary.

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