William Lockwood snubs the Rangers after they trade for him.
William Lockwood was acquired by the New York Rangers in a trade for Vitali Kravtsov, but that appears to have earned the Rangers no loyalty.
It would seem that the New York Rangers swapped one problem for another.
For quite some time the Rangers had a major headache in the form of forward Vitali Kravtsov, a former first round pick (9th overall) at the 2018 National Hockey League Entry Draft, with the player clearly unhappy about his development in the Rangers organization.
Fast forward in time a little and the Rangers would eventually trade away that problem by shipping Kravtsov off to Vancouver in exchange for a 7th round draft pick and forward William Lockwood. Unfortunately for the Rangers though it would seem they traded one headache for another.
That's because on Sunday night, Kyle Hall of USA Hockey reported that Lockwood would be snubbing the Rangers. Rather than re-sign with his current team, the team that gave up a former first round pick to acquire him, Lockwood has instead opted to take his talents to Florida.
According to Hall, Lockwood and the Florida Panthers have now come to terms on a new deal, although the financial details of that contract were not revealed.
Lockwood did not play for the Rangers at the NHL level after being acquired, spending the season in the American Hockey League as a member of the Hartford Wolfpack, and you have to wonder if a better opportunity to crack the NHL roster in Florida may have played a role in his decision.
The truly damning bit of this for the Rangers is the fact that, for a former 9th overall pick, they now only have a 7th round draft selection to show for it.
