The Artemi Panarin saga is over as the New York Rangers have traded him to the Los Angeles Kings for prospect Liam Greentree and a conditional third round pick.
Criteria in the third round selection to #NYR on the Artemi Panarin trade:
If i #KINGS won the final round this year, becoming the 2nd round
If i #KINGS they won two rounds of the playoffs this year, and got a 2028 4th round pick
— Chris Johnston (@reporterchris) February 4, 2026
The Rangers retained 50 percent of Panarin’s $8 million salary. His winnings were $11,642,857.
Shortly after the trade, the 34-year-old Panarin signed a two-year contract with the Kings for $22 million, which is $11 million.
The Kings have acquired Artemi Panarin for Liam Greentree and a conditional third-round pick, a league source confirmed. @emilymkaplan again @AdamSchefter they were first.
Amakhosi was the team Panarin’s camp wanted to go to eventually, I’m told. There is no chance of a bidding war.
— Peter Baugh (@Peter_Baugh) February 4, 2026
Greentree was drafted 26th overall in the first round of the 2024 draft by the Kings. In 34 games with the Windsor Spitfires of the OHL, the 6′ 3″ forward has 23 goals and 22 assists.
Many teams participated in the program, including the Washington Capitals, Florida Panthers, Detroit Red Wings, San Jose Sharks, Carolina Hurricanes, Dallas Stars, Colorado Avalanche, Vegas Golden Knights, Seattle Kraken, and Utah Mammoth. There are also others who have asked but they can get the opportunity to sell him since the player had a condition that he did not move and he was in control of where he wanted to go.
There was a lot of buzz surrounding Artemi Panarin as he was released from the roster for trade-related reasons last week, ahead of a home-and-home series with the New York Islanders. The Rangers announced that they will be out of the roster for roster-related reasons until the Olympic Roster Freeze on Wednesday, February 4. It was a goal from the player and the team’s teams to do this before the Roster Freeze.
However, this was a complex and layered deal. The Rangers knew, going back to last summer, that Panarin wanted to explore free agency in the summer of 2026. While trying to negotiate a deal, they didn’t want to rush into an extension with the 34-year-old looking for a four- or five-year deal at his current $11.7 million AAV. The guards were not willing to do that.
We know that the Rangers had high expectations this season to enter the playoffs. But given his status as a pending unrestricted free agent, how the season plays out will tell everything about Panarin. When GM Chris Drury sent out a letter informing fans of the fan-favorite retool on the go, the writing was on the wall for the Panarin trade.
Since signing as a member of the New York Rangers in July 2019, Artemi Panarin has recorded 607 points (205 goals and 402 assists) in 482 games with the franchise. He averaged 1.26 points per game and recorded the final assist in a 4-3 victory over the Boston Bruins at Madison Square Garden.
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