The #veseywatch is now officially on. With all due respect to Thriller, "It's just past (yes, I tweaked the lyrics) midnight and something evil's lurking In the dark (all other 29 teams)." The Rangers, like the rest of the NHL, is now on the clock as Jimmy Vesey, selected by the Nashville Predators in the third round (66th overall) in the 2012 draft and whose rights were traded to the Sabres for a third round pick, is a free agent able to sign with any team.
Several names weighed in today as to the #veseywatch
Darren Dreger:
Kevin Allen:
Joe MacDonald from ESPN:
http://www.espn.com/nhl/story/_/id/17308503/nhl-jimmy-vesey-decided-short-list-teams-becomes-free-agent
Is there a true favorite? Well, that depends on who you believe. The other day, it was Toronto and New Jersey. That might well still be the case, but Buffalo, Boston, Chicago and the Rangers are also believed to be in Vesey's top-six. Peter Fish, Vesey's agent hasn't really ruled any team out, but those six teams are thought to be the likely landing spot. But the Isles will make a pitch, so will Tampa, Pittsburgh and probably Philly along with several others.
The reported top-six each have strong pitches they can make.
As Carp noted in his column:
The Sabres, who could have signed him at any time before today, have not been able to do so, although Vesey has a close relationship with Buffalo phenom Jack Eichel and was said to be doing off-season work with Eichel.
Chicago reportedly planned to have captain Jonathan Toews present part of the Blackhawks’ pitch, with a promise of a top-six role on one of the NHL’s best rosters.
McDonald noted:
Many believe that Vesey, a native of Charlestown, Massachusetts, would want to play for his hometown team, the Bruins, and Boston is also one of those teams he would consider, but the Bruins would have to make a serious pitch to convince Vesey to sign.
New Jersey is an interesting landing spot. Under coach John Hynes, Vesey could be thrown right into the mix in every aspect of the game.
A Maple Leafs team in an organizational rebuild behind coach Mike Babcock is also intriguing. It helps that Vesey's father, Jim, works as a scout for the Maple Leafs. Toronto is loaded with young talent, including the recent No. 1 overall pick in the 2016 draft, Auston Matthews.
The Rangers have the room in the top-nine and maybe top-six for Vesey. Some of the selling points are:
GM Jeff Gorton, has a good relationship with Vesey’s agent, who also represented Rangers’ director of player development Chris Drury.
Coach Alain Vigneault likes to dole out even playing time to the top-nine, so Vesey, even on the third line, could see 16-17 minutes nightly.
Vesey will receive and likely has already received the full-court pitch from fellow Massachusetts natives, Kevin Hayes and Chris Kreider.
The presence of Henrik Lundqvist.
The allure of the big stage on Broadway and ability to become a star.
It all will play out over the next several days, with a decision quite possibly coming by the weekend. #veseywatch
With Antoine Vermette (two years, $3.5 mil in Anaheim) and Radim Vrabta (one-year, $1 million in Arizona) both signing today, that removes two possible addition candidates if Vesey doesn't sign in New York. If that scenario does play out, despite the depth added by Gorton, you have to believe he is going to try to provide another possible top-nine forward to the mix. That could be Jiri Hudler or Brandon Pirri or possibly via the trade route. If a trade does occur, there is a decent possibility it's to try and land a top-pair, right-handed blue liner, though that may becoming more and more of a long shot.
New York Rangers Blogger • 
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