Tarasenko set for Rangers debut day after trade from Blues

GREENBURGH, N.Y. --Vladimir Tarasenko is ready to start chasing the Stanley Cup with the New York Rangers.

"They have a goal here to win a Cup, which is very exciting," Tarasenko said.
Tarasenko and defenseman Niko Mikkola arrived in New York on Thursday hours after the Rangers acquired them in a trade with the St. Louis Blues for a conditional first-round pick in the 2023 NHL Draft, a conditional fourth-round pick in the 2024 draft, forward Sammy Blais and defenseman prospect Hunter Skinner.
The two newest Rangers were on the ice Friday for the morning skate at the team's practice facility. They will play against the Seattle Kraken at Madison Square Garden (7 p.m. ET; NHLN, SN, MSGSN, ROOT-NW, SN NOW).
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Tarasenko will be the right wing on the top line with center Mika Zibanejad and left wing Artemi Panarin, who has been one of his closest friends for the past 12 years. Mikkola will be on the third defense pair with Braden Schneider.
"It's hard mentally a little bit to change things," Tarasenko said. "For me, I like old stuff. I use old equipment for many, many years. I cannot switch. But I'm happy for a new challenge. My family will fly here for the first game and I'm very excited to see them tonight in Madison Square Garden."
Tarasenko, who is in the final season of an eight-year, $60 million contract ($7.5 million average annual value) and can become an unrestricted free agent after this season, said he knew in the past few days that he was going to be traded.

"No deal was offered so I knew I was going to move somewhere," the 31-year-old said. "I talked with Artemi and [the Rangers] wanted me here and I wanted to be here too. It's a big team. One of my best friends plays here. We have a chance to win a Cup again and that's our motivation."
However, Tarasenko said it has been a "tough couple of days" because St. Louis has been the Russia-born forward's only home in North America.
Selected by the Blues in the first round (No. 16) of the 2010 NHL Draft, Tarasenko played 644 regular-season games, scoring 553 points (262 goals, 291 assists), including at least 33 goals in five straight seasons from 2014-19. He won the Stanley Cup with the Blues in 2019.
He had 29 points (10 goals, 19 assists) in 39 games with the Blues this season after putting up an NHL career-best 82 points (34 goals, 48 assists) in 75 games last season.
"I'm really thankful for all those years [in St. Louis]," Tarasenko said. "They made us feel like family, feel like home. But I have a new home now and the guys have been great to me. I'm excited for a new challenge."
Panarin is thrilled the Rangers were able to acquire Tarasenko.
"I'm more happy than everyone," he said.
Panarin and Tarasenko met each other before the 2011 IIHF World Junior Championship, where they won a gold medal playing for Russia. Panarin was playing in his first World Juniors, and Tarasenko his second.
"He took me [under his wing]," Panarin said. "[It was my] first time on the national team, so he took care of me. Always thank him for that."
Panarin said he had heard the Rangers were interested in acquiring Tarasenko, but he didn't expect it to happen so soon before the NHL Trade Deadline on March 3.
"I heard two days before," he said. "I think maybe [it will happen] after 10 more games. I'm excited. He's an elite player."
Rangers coach Gerard Gallant said Tarasenko, Panarin and Zibanejad should make for an elite top line.

"I'm hoping Tarasenko is going to shoot the puck because we keep harping on our players to shoot the puck and I think he's a player that shoots the puck," Gallant said. "So, set him up and let him shoot the puck. We'll see how it goes."
Adding Tarasenko also gives the Rangers more options on the power play.
He will be on the second unit Friday, positioned in the right circle looking for one-timers with Vincent Trocheck,
Alexis Lafreniere
, Kaapo Kakko and Jacob Trouba around him. The top unit will feature Zibanejad, Panarin, Chris Kreider, Filip Chytil and Adam Fox.
Trocheck had been on the top unit all season, and Chytil on the second unit, but getting Tarasenko allows the Rangers to have more balance on both units. They had been primarily using the first unit of Zibanejad, Panarin, Kreider, Trocheck and Fox.
"We talk about being a team and playing together as a team and I think that'll give the other guys more of an opportunity," Gallant said. "It won't be one unit for a minute and 45 seconds. We'll give it a test run and see how it goes."
Getting Mikkola in the trade also gives the Rangers the depth on the back end that they were looking for. He played in 50 games with the Blues and had three assists.
Mikkola, who will replace Ben Harpur in the lineup, said he expects to play the same role in New York as he did in St. Louis.
"Just try to bring my game, hard defense, play the simple way, that kind of stuff," Mikkola said.
Like Panarin with Tarasenko, Kakko is excited to have Mikkola join him in New York because they're both from Finland and played together at the 2019 IIHF World Championship, winning gold.
"He had a big smile when I walked in the locker room," Mikkola said.
The only Finnish player Kakko has played with in New York was defenseman Tarmo Reunanen, who played four games in the 2020-21 season.
"I've been waiting four years to get a Finnish guy here," Kakko said. "Good for me. All of us over here are good guys, but sometimes it's fun to speak Finnish, maybe a little bit easier, and I know [Mikkola] already. Good guy."