MONTREAL _ Chris Kreider, who's been slowed by the flu all week, spoke Thursday for the first time about the contract extension he signed with the Rangers on Monday.
"It's a thrill really," he said after the Rangers' morning skate prior to Thursday's game against the Canadiens. "This is the only team I've ever known, the only place I've really wanted to play; an organization, front office and a team that gave me an opportunity to live out my dream playing the NHL. So I'm just incredibly happy to be here."
Kreider, who said he was so sick this week that he probably shouldn't have played in Tuesday's 4-3 overtime win over the Islanders, had steadfastly denied all season long that he was thinking about his contract season. On Thursday, though, he admitted that keeping the contract out of his mind was "a little tough" in the final few days before the trade deadline, when his agent, Matt Keator, and Rangers GM Jeff Gorton began negotiations in earnest.
