Rangers first round pick demands a trade in the next 3 weeks.

The New York Rangers may have a bit of a headache on their hands in the form of a disgruntled player now demanding to be moved elsehwere.

It will come as no surprise to anyone that has followed the Rangers over the last several seasons to learn that, once again, former Rangers first round pick (9th overall) at the 2018 National Hockey League Entry Draft, forward Vitali Kravtsov and the Rangers are not seeing eye to eye.

The Russian forward and the Rangers have constantly butted heads since Kravtsov was drafted and in spite of being a top 10 pick in 2018 this has resulted in him playing only a total of 48 NHL games as a member of the Rangers. It is unclear if the timing of this demand is linked to the recent acquisition of another talented forward in Vladimir Tarasenko, however Rangers insider Larry Brooks has now confirmed the trade demand from Kravtsov.

From Brooks:

The Post has confirmed that Vitali Kravtsov’s camp has requested that No. 74 be moved ahead of the March 3 deadline if he is not a part of the club’s immediate plans. Saturday’s scratch in Carolina after having been reinserted into the lineup the previous night against Seattle following four straight in street clothes indicates that he is not.

Brooks does however argue that the Rangers should not rush to trade Kravtsov simply to rid themselves of this headache, arguing that moving him for a rental ahead of the deadline would be poor asset management. The issue here for the Rangers is that opposing teams will be well aware of Kravtsov's issues at this stage in his development and there's little doubt that at this point it has greatly diminished his value in the eyes of many.

Perhaps he can turn things around with a change of scenery and a fresh coat of paint, the only question now is whether or not the Rangers and Rangers general manager Chris Drury will accommodate that.