Flames Trade Jokinen To Rangers

The Calgary Flames continue to remake its roster trading center Olli Jokinen and forward Brandon Prust to the New York Rangers on Tuesday in exchange for forwards Chris Higgins and Ales Kotalik.  The Flames also dealt defenseman Dion Phaneuf to the Toronto Maple Leafs over the weekend.  The four players are expected to join their new clubs as soon as Tuesday when the Rangers play the Los Angeles Kings.

Both Jokinen and Higgins will be unrestricted free agents at the end of the season.  Kotalik will have two years remaining on a contract he signed with New York this summer.  All three players have struggled this season; Jokinen has just 11 goals in 56 games, Higgins has only 14 points in 55 games, and Kotalik has scored only eight goals in 45 games.

The 25-year-old Prust, a bottom-6 energy player,  is the only player in the deal playing as expected with five points, a plus-2 rating, and 98 penalty minutes in 43 games.