Kaapo Kakko Opens Up Tenure With Rangers And Need For A Fresh Start

Kaapo Kakko is officially a member of the Seattle Kraken after being traded from the New York Rangers on Wednesday night.

Kakko spent six seasons with the Rangers after being selected with the second overall pick in the 2019 NHL Draft.

Despite enjoying his time in New York, Kakko felt he was in need of a fresh start elsewhere.

“Fresh start. I feel that’s what I need right now,” Kakko said. “I liked my time in New York… Many years over there, great team, but I think I’m waiting for a little more from myself. The team was waiting also, and it never worked out the way we wanted.”

The trade came days after Kakko voiced his displeasure about being scratched from the lineup as he continued to see his role diminish.

There may have been no specific trade request, but the desire for a split was mutual between Kakko and the Rangers.

Kakko was not surprised when he was ultimately traded to Seattle since he had a discussion about the possibility of being moved with Rangers general manager Chris Drury.

There was a sense that the Rangers wanted to make a change and Kakko felt he would be able to get more of an opportunity to play with a different team.

“There were maybe talks about that,” Kakko said on the communication he had with the Rangers about a trade. “I always loved my time in NY, all those years, but especially after last year, it was a bad year for me. I wasn't good enough, to be honest, but I also felt like a lot of games I could have got on the ice more to show what I can do. ... We talked about it a little bit.”

The 23-year-old’s comments regarding his benching caused many to believe that was the root for the Rangers taking swift action on a trade.

Kakko doubled down on his comments while emphasizing that this move had a lot more to do than just his individual comments.

“The team was not playing well enough, they needed to do something. I knew it might be me,” Kakko explained. “I was honest...there's guys playing PK and PP, and I wasn't in both of those.”

It’s all water under the bridge now with Kakko getting a fresh start in Seattle and the Rangers looking to get their season back on track.