Patrick Kane trade gets Rangers to do a stick tap

PHILADELPHIA  — Think the Rangers are happy to have Patrick Kane on their team?

“It's excitement for me, especially [since] that was my idol growing up,’’ Kid Line center Filip Chytil said after the Blueshirts’ optional skate Wednesday morning at Wells Fargo Center before their game against the Flyers. “So I’m very happy that he joined us, and I can't wait to play with him and have him around.’’

“I'm just excited to see him up close and have him on our team and see what he's going to do,’’ Mika Zibanejad said.

The Rangers were going to have to wait until Thursday night to see their new teammate, as Kane did not join the team here. But after all the salary-cap gymnastics the team had to perform to create the necessary space under the cap to add Kane late Tuesday, at least the Rangers could finally talk about having the former Chicago star forward on their team.

The Rangers acquired Kane in a three-way deal with Chicago and Arizona, sending a conditional 2023 second-round draft pick, a 2025 fourth-round pick and minor-league defenseman Andy Welinski to Chicago, and a 2025 third-round pick to Arizona to get Kane and minor-league defenseman Cooper Zech.

In his Zoom call with reporters after the Rangers announced the trade, GM Chris Drury said Kane would make his Rangers debut Thursday at Madison Square Garden against the Ottawa Senators rather than Wednesday because the team felt with Kane having flown to San Jose with Chicago, and then flown back from there in anticipation of the trade, that made the most sense.

As a result, the Rangers, who now have only 12 forwards on their roster, including Kane, had to play with only 11 forwards against the Flyers. With coach Gerard Gallant being cagey about the status of injured defenseman Ryan Lindgren, it was possible they would have to play with five defensemen, as well.

But all that was worth it, the Rangers believed, to get Kane, 34, the three-time Stanley Cup champion with Chicago, 2016 Hart Trophy winner as MVP, and fourth-leading scorer among American-born players in NHL history with 446 goals and 1,225 points.

“Obviously, to get a player like Kane is outstanding,’’ Gallant said. “He's a great competitor, Stanley Cup champion. So he's exactly what we needed, and we're real happy to have him."

Kane joins a roster that added Vladimir Tarasenko in a trade on Feb. 9, and now features a top-six forward group of Artemi Panarin, Mika Zibanejad, Chris Kreider, Vincent Trocheck, Kane and Tarasenko, with the Kid Line of Chytil, Alexis Lafrenière and Kaapo Kakko rounding out the top nine.

“When you see our team, every player, if somebody would tell me before I would step into the NHL … these names that I would play with, for me that would be unreal,’’ Chytil said. “So for me now, (it’s great) that I can be part of this team, and just, every practice showing that I belong here and showing that I want to be at their level.’’

Defenseman Braden Schneider, who was dressed but did not play in the Rangers’ 5-2 win over the Kings Sunday, and then was assigned to AHL Hartford (for two days) for salary cap reasons, said he was happy to make a sacrifice to help get Kane on board.

“They explained the situation to me and it's a pretty special player,’’ Schneider said. “I think it definitely made us better. And it was a thing that needed to be done. So it made sense. (And I was) happy to do my part.’’

By Colin Stephenson

colin.stephenson@newsday.comColinSNewsday

Colin Stephenson covers the Rangers for Newsday. He has spent more than two decades covering the NHL and just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.