Center Derek Stepan and goalie Antti Raanta were traded to the Arizona Coyotes by the New York Rangers on Friday for defenseman Anthony DeAngelo and Arizona's first-round pick (No. 7) in the 2017 NHL Draft.
Stepan, 27, had 55 points (17 goals, 38 assists) in 81 games with the Rangers this season and six points (two goals, four assists) in 12 Stanley Cup Playoff games. He has four years remaining on a six-year, $39 million contract with an average annual value of $6.5 million, according to CapFriendly.com.
Selected by New York in the second round (No. 51) of the 2008 NHL Draft, Stepan has 360 points (128 goals, 232 assists) in 515 games and 49 points (19 goals, 30 assists) in 97 playoff games.
"When I look at the Coyotes, I look at a team that has a ton of young talent, a team that is on the cusp of taking that next step toward being a real strong team and being someone that can compete for the Cup every single year," Stepan said. "They have some young guys that have that youthful talent that everyone always talks about."
Raanta, who served as Henrik Lundqvist's backup this season, was 16-8-2 with a 2.26 goals-against average, .922 save percentage and four shutouts. He is entering the final year of a two-year $2 million contract with an average annual value of $1 million.
"[This season] I felt that my game was finding the right way and my confidence level was getting better and better and I kind of felt I was giving the team a chance to win every night," he said. "I feel like I am ready to take the one more step, be playing more and take the No. 1 spot."
Raanta, 28, is 47-23-9 with a 2.32 GAA, .917 save percentage and eight shutouts in 94 games (78 starts) with the Rangers and Chicago Blackhawks.
"He is a guy that loves being a part of a team that goes out and wins hockey games, and he loves to be the guy that goes out and gets it done," Stepan said of Raanta. "That's something that he is going to get done in Arizona. He's an elite goaltender, he's learned from [Henrik Lundqvist] a little bit in two years there and I think he is excited to grab more ice time and more games."
DeAngelo, 21, has 14 points (five goals, nine assists) in 39 games in his rookie season with the Coyotes in 2016-17. Selected by the Tampa Bay Lightning with the 19th pick in the 2014 draft, he has two years remaining on his contract which has an average annual value of $1.26 million.
The Coyotes have the 23rd pick in the first round, which they acquired from the Minnesota Wild in a trade for forwards Martin Hanzal and Ryan White on Feb. 26.
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