It’s been a minute since we have had a dull May. After two Conference Final appearances in three years, the Rangers not only aren’t playing hockey in May, they barely played hockey in April. As we talk about potential offseason moves, we know one thing for almost certain: The Rangers will regret trading Zac Jones at the draft, one of the expected moves to be made, for the anticipated return of a mid-round pick.
It’s a foregone conclusion that Jones will be traded. Jones was already granted permission to seek a trade in January. Despite proving he was better than half the defense options this year, Jones was routinely healthy scratched for reasons that haven’t been made clear. Much like healthy scratching Kaapo Kakko, someone needed to be a scapegoat, and who better than a kid who is not yet established.
So it seems he will be traded, and with minimal value attached as a return. But let’s be clear, if the return isn’t solid, the Rangers will regret trading Zac Jones. He’s not untouchable by any stretch, but the expected mid-round return for Jones is going to go down as a pretty bad trade.
From Corey Sznajder’s All Three Zones, which manually tracks each puck touch, Jones excels at almost everything, albeit in a small sample size. What is particularly surprising is how good Jones is with zone entry defense, especially on a team that ceded the neutral zone and blue line like it was their job last season. He’s also very good at dump-ins, with a strong team-retrieval rate.
Aside: I’ve been finding far more value in microstats sites like A3Z when it comes to specific fits within a system. Since the Rangers really struggle with conceding the blue line, someone like Jones, who is adept at preventing entries and moving the puck quickly out of the zone, is a guy they should want to keep. Not perfect, but has that particular skill set they need.
Essentially, Jones is a defensively sound guy that can move the puck. Think Anton Stralman in his one year with the Rangers. He doesn’t have the powerplay time or the points to warrant a bigger discussion, but all the signs are there for an effective defenseman that is most certainly a viable bottom pair defenseman at worst. At best, he’s going to be a puck mover that can play in the top-four.
Given Jones’ miniscule contract projection of 2 years at $1.2 million, this should be a no-brainer for Chris Drury and the Rangers, and had they not mishandled him for the last two seasons, this wouldn’t be an issue. Now we are in a situation where the Rangers will regret trading Zac Jones, assuming the expected return of a mid-round pick. He’s a bargain, and any defenseman with similar microstats won’t come as cheap as Jones does.
While this won’t happen, and we are expecting that the Rangers will regret trading Zac Jones at the draft, Jones should slot in as the 3LD at a bare minimum. Urho Vaakanainen, the currently projected 3LD, is fine, but is more of a 7D. Jones is far better and has proven so. If Vaakanainen is worth 2 years at $1.55 million, then Jones is certainly worth $1.2 million over the same duration.
Given the skill set, proven ability in areas of weakness, the offensive ability, and the contract expectations, re-signing Jones should be one of the easiest decisions Chris Drury had this offseason. If Jones is packaged in a larger trade, so be it, and that is probably the best use of his trade value at this point. It’s more likely the Rangers will regret trading Zac Jones at the draft, especially when we are all expecting a minimal return.
