Jake DeBrusk landed in a hypothetical trade to the New York Rangers, and the proposal floating around X has a real logic behind it.
The idea, credited to MTPS and shared by Chip23, would send Braden Schneider and Urho Vaakanainen to Vancouver.
In return, Vancouver would send DeBrusk and Vittorio Mancini back to New York.
This is fan speculation, not a reported trade, but the pieces line up in a way that's worth breaking down.
DeBrusk posted 23 goals and 19 assists for 42 points in 81 games with Vancouver last season.
His cap hit sits at $5,500,000, and Chip23's post was blunt about it, noting he hasn't quite lived up to that contract.
What he still brings is an elite gear and a heavy shot, the exact traits that could make a struggling Rangers top six more dangerous.
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DeBrusk's shot could fit perfectly next to Miller
The pitch has DeBrusk slotting in next to J.T. Miller and Pavel Dorofeyev, and the fit reads well on paper.
Miller put up 17 goals and 36 assists for 53 points in 68 games last season, still the engine of whatever line he anchors.
Dorofeyev was the real driver of offense though, scoring 37 goals and adding 27 assists for 64 points across a full 82 game season.
Chip23's reasoning leans on chemistry too, pointing to a good relationship between DeBrusk and Miller as part of the appeal.
Giving something up matters here. Schneider logged 2 goals and 16 assists in 82 games, a steady if unspectacular season on New York's blue line.
Vaakanainen barely factored in, managing just 6 assists in 34 games, the kind of role player teams move without much hesitation.
Vancouver finished 25-49-8 for 58 points last season, dead last overall, exactly the kind of season that opens the door to shipping out a veteran like DeBrusk.
New York finished 34-39-9 for 77 points, 29th overall, a season rough enough that adding scoring punch up front is an obvious offseason priority.
Mancini barely factors into the return here, with just 3 points in 24 games, more of a throw in than a headline piece.
Nothing about this trade is close to real. It's one account's mock proposal, and neither front office has been reported as discussing it.
But if Vancouver is truly listening on veteran forwards, DeBrusk's shot and skating are exactly the kind of traits that get a phone call started.
Would you trade Braden Schneider and Urho Vaakanainen for Jake DeBrusk?
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