Senators trade Tyler Motte to Rangers for Julien Gauthier, pick

The Ottawa Senators have traded forward Tyler Motte to the New York Rangers in exchange for forward Julien Gauthier and a 2023 conditional seventh-round pick, the teams announced Sunday.

If the Rangers advance to the second round of the playoffs, the pick will upgrade to the lower of the two sixth-round selections New York holds.

Motte was initially expected to miss Ottawa's afternoon clash against the St. Louis Blues for trade-related reasons.

This will mark Motte's second stint with the Rangers. He was also on the move during last year's trade deadline when the Vancouver Canucks shipped him to New York in exchange for a 2023 fourth-round pick. Motte didn't register a point in nine regular-season games in the Big Apple, but he scored twice in 15 playoff games during the Rangers' run to the Eastern Conference Final.

Motte, 27, carries a cap hit of $1.35 million and can become an unrestricted free agent this summer. He's put up three goals, six assists, 88 hits, and 43 blocks in 38 games this season while seeing 13:32 minutes of ice time per contest.

Gauthier, 25, has six goals and three helpers in 40 games with the Rangers this season. Initially drafted 21st overall by the Carolina Hurricanes in 2016, Gauthier has 27 points in 136 career NHL contests.

The Senators sit seventh in the Atlantic Division with a 26-24-4 record and are seven points out of the second wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference.

The Rangers, meanwhile, sit in third place in the Metropolitan Division after going 33-14-9 so far this season. New York made a big splash earlier this month, scooping up Vladimir Tarasenko and Niko Mikkola from the St. Louis Blues.