Whirlwind Broadway arrival for Wennberg
Alex Wennberg had been waiting around for a trade to be made as he was held out of the Kraken’s past two games.
Seattle had informed the 29-year-old center he would be on the move, so it came as no surprise when he was dealt to the Rangers on Wednesday in exchange for a second-round pick in 2024 and a conditional fourth-rounder in 2025.
Wennberg, his wife Felicia, 37 weeks pregnant, and their son Rio, then boarded a five-hour-plus, redeye flight to New York. They landed at 8 a.m. Thursday and were at the MSG Training Center just over an hour and a half later before the Swede took the ice with his white-taped stick and tinted visor for his first practice with the Rangers at 11 a.m.
“First of all, it’s a dream come true playing for the Rangers for me,” Wennberg said in his first scrum with reporters inside the Rangers’ locker room in Tarrytown. “Then also, in this position, pushing for the playoffs. For me, [going] from Seattle — we’ve been fighting to get in — and now, instead I feel like I can help this team push to playoffs and I want to win the Cup, as well.”
Head coach Peter Laviolette rotated his bottom-six players throughout practice Thursday, indicating nothing is set in stone with the Rangers expected to make more moves before Friday’s 3 p.m. cutoff for trades. Wennberg took reps between Adam Edstrom and Jimmy Vesey, as well as Vesey and Will Cuylle.
A top penalty killer in Seattle, Wennberg is expected to join the Rangers’ PK forward rotation alongside Mika Zibanejad, Chris Kreider, Barclay Goodrow, Vincent Trocheck and Vesey.
Wennberg noted that he mostly played a defensive role for the Kraken, who often used him as a shutdown player against top lines. There’s an offensive side to his game as well, which has come through with nine goals and 16 assists in 60 games this season.
It sounds like Wennberg anticipates filling the Rangers’ third-line center spot.
“I think it’s really important to have a player or a line like that, that can be put together and do a specific job,” said Laviolette, who called Wennberg right away once the deal was finalized. “Still, for me, more of a versatile player because I do think you watch him out here, he skates really well, he moves really well, his hands are smooth and he’s put up points in his career. So, for me, more of a two-way forward, but the fact that he has been used in that role and succeeded in it, I think that’s a plus for us, as well.
“Just to be able to fill a spot like that and possibly build a line that might relieve some of the minutes that might be taken [by] either Mika’s line or Troch’s line, down to the defensive zone and maybe more offensive zones to put them in a better starting position, that could help as well.”
The Swedish population in the Rangers’ locker room has blossomed, and Wennberg’s compatriots made a point to show him around Thursday. Wennberg actually played with Zibanejad and Erik Gustafsson for Djurgardens IF Stockholm in the Swedish Hockey League and J20 Nationell, Sweden’s junior league.
Artemi Panarin also played with Wennberg when they overlapped for two seasons in Columbus in 2017-18 and 2018-19.
Wennberg cited the Rangers’ professionalism and prominence in the NHL as his impressions of the organization from the outside looking in. Additionally, fellow Swede Henrik Lundqvist was a favorite of Wennberg’s growing up.
“Very skilled player,” Gustafsson said of Wennberg. “High IQ. Fast. Tempo. Plays both ends. Hell of a guy in the locker room, too. I’m happy he’s here. He’s a great addition to this team.”