Chris Kreider is really good at hockey. He's perhaps the best player on the Boston College Eagles. At the 2012 Frozen Four, which kicks off Thursday in St. Petersburg, Fla., he'll try to lead his team to yet another national title.
He's also a New York Rangers prospect, and the team plans to sign him to a contract following his college season. Kreider has not said whether or not he'll skip his senior season at Boston College and join the Rangers for the playoffs, but the question has been raised whether or not that'll even be possible.
Here's where it gets complicated: According to a CBC report Monday (since taken down), Kreider would have to sign with the Rangers by the conclusion of the regular season on Saturday night. The national title game is also Saturday night, which would have made things very interesting in terms of timing.
But following a New York Post report which contradicted the CBC, reporter Elliotte Friedman retracted the point, noting that any player on a club's reserve list by the trade deadline is eligible to play in the postseason. According to Section 8.6 of the collective bargaining agreement, that includes unsigned draft choices like Kreider, who was selected by the Rangers in the 2009 draft.
That doesn't mean the Rangers will get the Kreider boost come playoff time, though. He's still yet to decide whether or not he'll go pro following the Frozen Four. The collective bargaining agreement outlined in Section 9.1 that Kreider will have to sign a three-year entry-level contract upon joining the Rangers, but by playing for the Rangers this season, he'd burn one year of that contract. That means he could hit free agency two years earlier than if he were to stay in school for his senior season.
Money and the opportunity to win a Stanley Cup are pretty strong motivators, but if the Eagles win another national title this weekend, could Kreider opt to make one more go at college glory again?
For more on the Frozen Four, stick with our StoryStream. For more on Boston College hockey, check with Eagles blog BC Interruption, and for everything you need to know on Kreider's pro team, check with Rangers blog Blueshirt Banter.