Vegas trades tough guy Ryan Reaves

This just in courtesy of Vegas Golden Knights insider Jesse Granger of The Athletic, the Knights have traded tough guy Ryan Reaves to the New York Rangers in exchange for a 3rd round draft pick.

Check it out:

Both the Golden Knights and the Rangers have now confirmed the deal, making it official:

In Reaves the Rangers are getting the NHL's reigning heavyweight champion and a formidable opponent for Washington Capitals pugilist Tom Wilson. Wilson put up one goal and five points in 37 games with the Golden Knights last season. More relevantly though, he had three fighting majors and 27 minutes in penalties over the same span. Look for that number to inflate in 2021-22 though. You just know that Reaves is going to work hard to impress upon his new teammates in New York. After all, he's always been a team-first kind of guy who's willing to do whatever it takes to win. Add to the fact that Reaves will be playing under new Rangers head coach Gerard Gallant, with whom he went to the Stanley Cup Final with Vegas in 2018, and I'm willing to bet that Reaves will come out guns 'a blazin' in New York. 

Frankly, I can't wait until the Capitals and Wilson make their first visit to Madison Square Garden to take on the Rangers and Reaves. Ring the bell!

You may recall that the the pair have a bit of history:

These two have a history going all the way back to 2013. It looked to peak during the 2018 Stanley Cup Final and then into the 2018-19 regular season, but for some reason I get the feeling that the best is still yet to come. With the Rangers on the way up and with the Capitals' roster aging rapidly, it'll be interesting to see the power dynamic that will play out between these two teams. Even more so now that Reaves has been added to the mix. 

And even if the Reaves/Wilson feud proves to be tepid, the Rangers are still acquiring a very capable fourth line player who is always amongst the league leaders for hits. They're getting a hard nosed, hardworking, high character individual for the cost of a 3rd rounder. Not a bad bit of business from rookie GM Chris Drury.