On April 2, 2013, Clowe, with his contract set to expire at the end of the 2012–13 season, was traded to the New York Rangers in exchange for a second- and a third-round pick in 2013, as well as a conditional second-round pick in 2014. (The conditional pick was to become a fifth-round pick should Clowe not resign with New York, or should New York fail to win two playoff rounds; both conditions were satisfied and the pick became a fifth-rounder.)