Kreider traded to Ducks by Rangers for prospect Terrance, 3rd-round pick

Chris Kreider was traded to the Anaheim Ducks by the New York Rangers on Thursday.

The Rangers received forward prospect Carey Terrance and a third-round pick in the 2025 NHL Draft. New York also sent a fourth-round pick in 2025 to Anaheim.

Kreider had 30 points (22 goals, eight assists) in 68 games this season. The 34-year-old forward, who was selected by New York in the first round (No. 19) of the 2009 NHL Draft, was the Rangers' longest-tenured player, having arrived in New York during the 2012 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

"You go through a pretty wide array of emotions. I think at the end of the day the most consistent thing is gratitude," Kreider told Alexis Downie of Ducks Stream, the teams official audio platform. "I feel incredibly lucky to have played for the Rangers for as long as I did. ... An 18-year-old kid getting drafted out of high school hockey in Massachusetts, that process happened for me super quickly. I think my family and I were kind of shocked at that process, and then to have been picked by a big market team like that, it was all a whirlwind and it went by super quick. But to have made the kind of friendships and the kind of relationships that my family and I were able to make through playing for the Rangers ... those are friends that I'll have for life, and obviously there are a few of them on the Ducks."

Kreider has 582 points (326 goals, 256 assists) in 883 regular-season games and 76 points (48 goals, 28 assists) in 123 Stanley Cup Playoff games.

He ranks seventh in Rangers history in games played, third in goals, is tied for first in power-play goals (116) and 10th in points. He is also New York's all-time leader in the playoffs in games played and goals, and is third in points.

"Chris Kreider is the type of player we were looking to add this offseason," Ducks general manager Pat Verbeek said. "He has size (6-foot-3, 230 pounds), speed and is a clutch performer that elevates his game in big moments. Chris also upgrades both of our special teams units, something we really needed to address."

The Rangers will not retain any of Kreider's salary on his contract, which has two seasons remaining at an average annual value of $6.5 million.

"It's something we kind of talked about, going back and forth for the last couple of weeks, so I guess it wasn't actually a surprise or a shock, but I think more surprised just with the number of people that reached out," Kreider said of the trade. "Whether it be from earlier in my hockey career, my time with the Rangers ... just how welcoming everyone's been within the Anaheim organization, the players and some of the staff, it's hard not be super excited to be joining that group."

The trade gives New York the salary cap flexibility needed to pursue free agents or present potential offer sheets to restricted free agents.

"We want to thank Chris Kreider for all of his contributions to the Rangers organization over his stellar career," Rangers GM Chris Drury said. "Chris has been an integral part of some of the most iconic moments in Rangers history, including setting multiple franchise records and helping the team advance to the 2014 Stanley Cup Final. His leadership on the ice and tireless efforts in the community -- which he was recognized for as the inaugural recipient of the Rod Gilbert "Mr. Ranger" Award -- only add to his distinguished Rangers legacy. Chris will always be a Ranger and we wish him and his family all the best.”

Kreider is the second big name from the Rangers the Ducks have acquired within the past year. They traded for defenseman Jacob Trouba on Dec. 6 for defenseman Urho Vaakanainen and a fourth-round pick in the 2025 NHL Draft.

Trouba had been New York's captain at the time of the trade. He had eight points (one goal, seven assists) and averaged 20:45 of ice time in 53 games for the Ducks.

"Jacob ... has to be one of the best teammates I've ever played with," Kreider said. "Everything that he brings as a player and a leader. That's a guy that you want on your team ... and he's a terrific friend, too, so that's certainly a massive plus. Super easy guy to talk to. He's been such a good friend, such a good teammate to me for such a long time, so being able to play with him again, it's amazing."

In addition to Trouba, Kreider has been NHL teammates with current Ducks forwards Ryan Strome and Frank Vatrano.

"I think obviously there's some familiarity with some of the players on the roster having played with a bunch of those guys in New York," Kreider said. "I mean, everyone just has such glowing things to say about not only the organization, but the staff, the living situation, and the direction the team's going in."

Terrance had 39 points (20 goals, 19 assists) in 45 games for Erie of the Ontario Hockey League this season, his fourth with the team. He also scored two goals in seven games at the 2025 IIHF World Junior Championship, helping the United States win the gold medal.

The 20-year-old, who was born in Akwesasne, New York, was selected by Anaheim in the second round (No. 59) of the 2023 NHL Draft.

New York (39-36-7) failed to qualify for the playoffs after finishing fifth in the Metropolitan Division. The Rangers were six points behind the Montreal Canadiens for the second wild card from the Eastern Conference.

Peter Laviolette was then fired as coach on April 19 after two seasons. He was replaced by former Pittsburgh Penguins coach Mike Sullivan on May 2.

The Ducks (35-37-10) finished sixth in the Pacific Division, failing to qualify for the playoffs for the seventh straight season. Anaheim was 16 points behind the St. Louis Blues for the second wild card from the Western Conference but improved by 21 points from 2023-24.

Greg Cronin was fired as coach on April 19 after two seasons and replaced by Joel Quenneville on May 8.

"I'm looking forward to getting to the rink with that group," Kreider said. "Getting to work, building something special. ... Going into every training camp, the goal is to make it to the playoffs, and I'm looking forward to helping this group get there and doing what I can to help win hockey games.

"I've had some really good conversations with incoming coach Joel Quenneville and with the general manager, so it was a bit of a process the last couple of weeks, but I think the anticipation and the excitement is just built from those conversations."