The New York Rangers are expected to pursue **Kirill Kaprizov** if he does not sign a new contract with the Minnesota Wild, as reported by The Athletic journalist Vince Mercogliano. Previously, it was revealed that the Russian forward rejected Minnesota’s offer of $128 million over eight years (with a cap hit of $16 million). The 28-year-old could become an unrestricted free agent on July 1 of next year.

“I’ve heard that the Rangers are among the teams interested in Kaprizov. We know that Chris Drury is creating some salary cap space and is eager to make changes to the roster. I anticipate the team will be aggressive if Kirill hits the market.

Both Kaprizov and Artemi Panarin share the same agent. I’ve also heard that the agent has good connections with other Russian players on the Rangers, including Igor Shesterkin and Vladislav Gavrikov. I believe the team has several advantages that could appeal to Kaprizov should he decide to leave Minnesota,” Mercogliano stated to Sportskeeda.