Rangers and Lightning Swap AHL Forwards

The New York Rangers and Tampa Bay Lightning paired up to make a trade that should impact each of their American Hockey League affiliates. It might not be the blockbuster that the recent Mikko Rantanen trade was, but the trade carousel continues with a swapping of AHL forwards.
The Rangers sent 22-year-old forward Ryder Korczak to the Lightning for 23-year-old forward Lucas Edmonds. Both forwards will report to their new AHL teams once they arrive in their new organizations.
#NYR have acquired forward Lucas Edmonds from Tampa Bay in exchange for Ryder Korczak. pic.twitter.com/Ityc8e9DtV
— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) January 25, 2025
The Rangers originally drafted Korczak in the third round of the 2021 NHL Draft, taking him No. 75 overall. The Saskatchewan, Canada native was a strong player over his four seasons in the Western Hockey League, including a standout final campaign where he tallied 28 goals and 69 points in just 48 games.
This is is his second professional season. Last year, he played in 67 games for the Rangers' affiliate, the Hartford Wolf Pack. As a rookie in the AHL, he scored nine goals and added 11 assists to finish with 20 points. This year, he had appeared in 35 games with the Wolf Pack, scoring three goals and adding eight assists. He'll have a chance to continue developing with Tampa Bay, as he reports to the Syracuse Crunch of the AHL.
Meanwhile, the Lightning parted ways with their own young AHL player in Edmonds. The Lightning also selected him in the third round of the NHL Draft, only a year later in 2022. He played his junior hockey in the Ontario Hockey League and spent time in the Swedish Hockey League before making the jump to professional hockey in North America.
Edmonds debuted in the AHL during the 2022-2023 campaign, playing in 49 games. He impressed with 15 goals and 12 assists over his rookie campaign. Last year, he managed to play in just 45 games and finished with nine goals and 16 points. This year, he was struggling with just one goal and five points in 25 games. He'll get a fresh start when he reports to Hartford.