The Fourth Period :: New York Rangers :: Rangers trade Gomez to Canadiens in 6-player deal

June 30, 2009 | 5:00pm ET
Rangers trade Gomez to Habs in 6-player deal
TheFourthPeriod.com

The New York Rangers have traded center Scott Gomez, forward Tom Pyatt and defenseman Michael Busto to the Montreal Canadiens for winger Christopher Higgins, and defensemen Ryan McDonagh, Pavel Valentenko and Doug Janik.

"We are extremely pleased to have acquired a player of the caliber of Scott Gomez," Canadiens GM Bob Gainey said. "He is an outstanding playmaker and an excellent skater. Having won the Stanley Cup twice with the New Jersey Devils, he brings to our team a lot of playoff experience.

"Scott is an elite player who will certainly contribute to the success of our team for years to come."

Gomez, 29, will be entering his 10th NHL season in 2009-10. He makes an average of $7.357 million per year on his contract. Last season, he led the Rangers with 58 points, including 16 goals in 77 regular season games.

The first-ever Hispanic player drafted in the first round of the NHL Entry Draft and 18th Alaskan-born player ever selected, Scott Gomez started off his NHL career with the Devils in 1999-00.

Higgins, 26, has skated in 282 regular season contests with Montreal, recording 84 goals and 67 assists for 151 points, along with 96 penalty minutes.

He appeared in 57 games with the Canadiens this past season, registering 12 goals and 11 assists for 23 points, along with 22 penalty minutes.

The Smithtown, New York native was originally Montreal's first round choice, 14th overall, in the 2002 NHL Entry Draft.

McDonagh, 20, skated in 36 contests with the University of Wisconsin Badgers of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) this past season, registering five goals and 11 assists for 16 points, along with 59 penalty minutes.

The St. Paul, Minnesota native was originally Montreal's first round choice, 12th overall, in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft.

Valentenko, 21, split the 2008-09 season between Dynamo Moscow of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) and the Hamilton Bulldogs of the AHL.

The Nizhnekamsk, Russia native was originally Montreal's fifth round choice, 139th overall, in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft.

Pyatt, 22, appeared in 73 games with the Hartford Wolf Pack (AHL) this past season, registering 15 goals and 22 assists for 37 points, along with 22 penalty minutes.

Busto, 23, skated in 54 games with the Charlotte Checkers of the East Coast Hockey League (ECHL) in 2008-09, recording three goals and eight assists for 11 points, along with 41 penalty minutes.

From the Editor: Whoa, this one comes a bit as a shock. There were some rumblings over the last week that the Habs and Rangers were talking, but I didn't expect Gainey to pull the trigger on a deal. As good as Gomez is, his salary and cap hit is simply enormous. This should cancel out any chance of the Sedin twins coming to Montreal. As for the Rangers, a good deal for them. Higgins is an RFA but he won't command a lot. McDonagh's a great young prospect and he'll be a solid No.2-3 defenseman for the Rangers in the future. -- David Pagnotta.