Ten days after the New York Rangers traded Filip Chytil to the Vancouver Canucks in a mega-deal for J.T. Miller, the 25-year-old forward penned a goodbye and thank you message on Instagram on Tuesday.
“I would like to thank everyone in the New York Rangers organization, especially my teammates, staff members, and the fans for support throughout the last seven years,” Chytil said. “There are a lot of great memories which I will keep with me for the rest of my life. But, now I am enjoying every single minute in Vancouver and can’t describe how happy I am to be part of the Canucks organization!”
It was a rollercoaster ride over eight seasons in New York for Chytil, after being selected in the first round (No. 21 overall) in the 2017 NHL Draft. Over that time, he suited up in 378 games, and scored 75 goals to go along with 89 assists for 164 points. His development took time, but he’s evolved into a very solid two-way player over his career.
Unfortunately, Chytil suffered numerous setbacks due to multiple head injuries. Just when he was coming off of a NHL career-high 22 goal and 45-point season in 2022-23, he sustained his most major setback, which caused him to play just 10 regular-season games in 2023-24.
Filip Chytil returns to New York to face Rangers in March
Chytil persevered, and made his return at the start of 2024-25 for the Rangers, scoring in the opening game of the season against the Pittsburgh Penguins. Chytil had 11 goals and 20 points in 41 games for the Rangers before being dealt to Vancouver in what was a difficult, but necessary move for the Rangers.
In four games thus far with his new team, Chytil has logged one goal and two assists while averaging 18:39 TOI, over four minutes higher than his average with the Rangers this season, 14:20.
Chytil started his Canuck career with a bang, scoring in his first game with them against the Detroit Red Wings to tie the game at two, albeit on the way to an eventual overtime loss.
Chytil will make his return to Madison Square Garden on March 22 when the Canucks visit the Rangers, and the Blueshirt Faithful can return the well wishes that Chytil shared on Instagram on Tuesday.
