For most of Wednesday, it was crickets until 3 PM. When it looked like there wouldn’t be any big move, the Kings and Rangers completed a trade for Artemi Panarin at the buzzer.

In an underwhelming return that set off fireworks on X, the Rangers traded Panarin to the Kings for 20-year-old prospect Liam Greentree, a 2026 conditional third and 2028 conditional fourth round pick.

Following Panarin signing off on his preferred choice of Los Angeles, he agreed to a two-year contract extension worth $22 million.

After spending nearly seven years playing for the Rangers in the Big Apple, the 34-year-old Russian star will go star for the Kings in Hollywood at Crypto.com Arena. In a post yesterday, I referenced why playing in LA would be attractive. As it turned out, that’s where Panarin wanted to go.

Related: The Latest On Panarin: Five Potential Landing Spots

The most disappointing aspect of the trade is that even with the Rangers agreeing to pick up half of Panarin’s remaining salary, that’s all they could get back for a star player who performed up to expectations. Unfortunately, the no-movement clause hindered Rangers team president and general manager Chris Drury’s leverage. It didn’t help that Drury went public by making it clear to Panarin that he wasn’t part of their plans. That had to sting Panarin, whose reaction to the news wasn’t positive.

Despite all the rumors from most NHL insiders who were close to the situation, they all were wrong on Panarin. In fact, it was ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter who helped break the news via Emily Kaplan that the Kings had acquired Panarin.

When it was revealed what the Rangers were receiving for Panarin, the reaction was very predictable. Greentree is a player we mentioned previously. The 20-year-old forward has 45 points (23-22-45) this season for Windsor in the Ontario Hockey League.

For more on Greentree, please refer to this scouting report. Here’s an except from yesterday’s post on the former 2024 Kings’ first round pick.

2024 first round pick Liam Greentree would be a player the Rangers should have interest in. In 2024-25, he put up 49 goals and 70 assists for 119 points with the Windsor Spitfires of the Ontario Hockey League. That included a team best 14 goals and 10 helpers for 24 points in the OHL playoffs. In 34 games this season, Greentree has 23 goals and 22 assists for 45 points. In an irony of sorts, his teammate is Jack Nesbitt, who the Flyers took with the first round pick the Rangers parted with to re-acquire Miller on Jan. 31, 2024.

From a Rangers viewpoint, all fans can hope is for Greentree to become a good player who can play in the top six. He has some size due to his six-foot three, 216-pound frame. The Oshawa, Ontario native sounds like he still has to work on his skating. However, at 20, he will turn pro after the season concludes. Hopefully, he can make a smooth transition at the next level.

In regards to the terms on the picks, the 2026 third round pick can become a second round pick if the Kings win one playoff round. They’d receive the 2028 fourth round pick if the Kings win two round.

Adding a little more detail on Greentree, he’s considered the Kings’ best prospect. The Rangers thought highly of him, which helped complete the Panarin move to LA.

If there’s a disappointing part, it’s that they weren’t able to get more back. Unfortunately, the market wasn’t what it seemed for an older star who wanted an extension attached to any deal. Ultimately, Panarin chose the Kings due to what I mentioned on Tuesday. He got his wish.

A final thought on what transpired. This is the third time Drury screwed up with the handling of a player. Unlike Jacob Trouba, who he ran through the mud, Drury made a big mistake by making it known to the public that Panarin was going to be traded. It didn’t help the situation at all, with even veteran leaders having tough reactions to the news that Panarin had played his final game as a Ranger.

It was like another dark cloud hanging over the locker room. Now, Panarin’s finally gone. The losing will probably continue on Thursday when they face the Hurricanes.

Panarin will return to MSG on Mar. 16 with the Kings for the first time. That should be a wild environment for a player who gave everything he had while earning the $11.64 million in each season. One thing that’ll continue is the call from disgruntled fans to fire Drury. Unfortunately, he’s not going anywhere. That doesn’t inspire much confidence moving forward.

Who’s next? If I had to guess, Vincent Trocheck or Braden Schneider. The hope is that they can bring back more due to not having full no-trade protection. At this point, don’t expect much.