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With all the talk of the Rangers trying to acquire Rick Nash from the Columbus Blue Jackets, there's another potential trade option brewing down south.
When Ryan Suter left Nashville to sign a 13-year deal with the Minnesota Wild, it opened up the speculation that Nashville's other defensive star Shea Weber wouldn't re-sign with the team, and force his way out via a trade.
If Nashville is unable to come to an agreement with the 26-year-old defenseman, they'd have to move him to get something in return for him.
The question then becomes what would it take to pry Weber out of Nashville? Better yet, what would it take for the Rangers to acquire him?
Larry Brooks at the NY Post believes Weber is the guy you break the bank for. He included just five players — Henrik Lundqvist, Ryan McDonagh, Ryan Callahan, Dan Girardi and Chris Kreider — as players the team should not include in a transaction.
He also added Brad Ricahrds and Marian Gaborik due to their no-movement clauses in their contracs.
That's it. Everyone else is "on the table," according to Brooks.
The Rangers need offense, as they were held to two goals or less 32 times last season, and scored less than three goals in 19 or 20 playoff games.
But Brooks said you can add offense through defense, especially on the powerplay, where Weber, a multi-time Norris Trophy finalist, excels. The Rangers were No. 23 in the NHL in the regular season; Weber was on the ice for 47 of the Predators' 54 powerplay goals, which finished at 21.6 percent, tops in the league.
Once he's acquired, though, then he must be signed. Brooks said when comparing Weber against other players' salaries, including Suter's 13-year, $98 million deal with Minnesota, a contract for Weber could be in the neighborhood of 14 years and as much as $119 million, an average cap-hit of about $8.5 million.
It's unknown if the Rangers can acquire Weber, and what it would take. You'd have to figure it would be Brandon Dubinsky, Derek Stepan, Michael Del Zotto, Tim Erixon and possibly another prospect or draft pick.
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