Blog Archives
Rangers sign Derek Stepan to six year deal
Bobby Bevilacqua
This guy is going to be a Ranger for the next six years. Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.
The last domino has fallen into place and Jeff Gorton can check everything off of his to-do list.
Early this morning, around 9:30 am, The New York Rangers and Jeff Gorton announced that the Rangers had agreed to terms with Derek Stepan on a new long term contract.
The deal was six years in length for $39 million, averaging out to a cap hit of $6.5 million a year. Stepan, just 25 years old, will be a New York Ranger until the age of 31, when he will hit the market as an unrestricted free agent.
“Both sides were pretty close to begin with,” said Stepan. “I think both sides are very happy and comfortable with the deal. The whole time, we (both sides) were trying to get a long term deal done. There’s nothing but exciting things to come for us moving forward, it’s a special feeling to be a part of it. We have an exciting group of guys and a group of guys that are ready to take the next step. I can’t be more excited to be a part of a team that I absolutely love!” Read the rest of this entry
The Stepan Situation May Reach Arbiration, and Kevin Hayes is a big reason why
Tim Christian
Almost everyone is saying that the Rangers will come to terms with RFA Derek Stepan before the arbitration date. But will they? There are a lot of factors that say otherwise. Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.
As we near the date of Derek Stepan’s arbitration hearing, there seems to be much talk centered around “How Much” and for “How Long”, with many folks feeling the Rangers & Stepan will come to a long-term agreement just under the wire.
Indeed, this has generally been the case with the Rangers. The Rangers last allowed a player to reach an arbitration hearing in 2009. Nikolai Zherdev was the player, and the Rangers chose to not pay him the $3.9 million award. Instead, they let him walk.
While I certainly don’t think Stepan will be allowed to walk, I do think the Rangers may let arbitration run its course and pay him for 1 or 2 years. I say this because of:
– Kevin Hayes
– The Rangers’ highly paid Defense
– The Rangers’ highly paid Goaltender
– The Salary Cap Read the rest of this entry
Gorton’s salary cap management leaves much needed wiggle room
Bobby Bevilacqua
Jeff Gorton should be applauded for his handling of the Rangers’ RFAs this offseason, but he still has some big decisions ahead. Photo courtesy of Getty Images.
Jeff Gorton and the Rangers have been very busy this week, signing almost all of their restricted free agents to new deals, and leaving valuable cap space open for the future. Gorton signed or re-signed Dylan McIlrath (article HERE), Magnus Hellberg (article HERE), JT Miller and Jesper Fast (article HERE), and Oscar Lindberg and Emerson Etem (article HERE).
What’s even better is that all of the players signed below what was their expected value. Oscar Lindberg, Emerson Etem, Jesper Fast and JT Miller signed for a combined cap hit of just $3.325 million. Now that’s great asset management.
If all of the listed cap hits are right, the Rangers have about $6.925 million left in free space. But that number, believe it or not, is realistically a bit higher. Also assuming that Dylan McIlrath ($600k) doesn’t make the team, and that Jayson Megna ($600k) is an AHL depth player, which is very likely, you can bump the Rangers available cap space to around $8.125 million. That’s a lot more than anyone thought the Rangers would have at this point. Read the rest of this entry
Rangers agree to terms with RFAs Jesper Fast and JT Miller
Bobby Bevilacqua
The Rangers have re-signed two more of their RFAs, making JT Miller and Jesper Fast Rangers for the next season. Photo courtesy of Bill Kostroun/AP Photos.
New York Rangers continue to lock up their restricted free agents, signing another three in total today, with the latest signings being Jesper Fast and JT Miller, announced earlier this afternoon by GM Jeff Gorton.
With the latest signings, the Rangers have retained all of their restricted free agents except for Derek Stepan, who is set to go to arbitration on July 27th.
Jesper Fast earned himself a two year deal after a very good season for the 23 year old Swede. In his first season in the NHL, Fast appeared in 58 regular season games, scoring 14 points (6-8-14) in the process. He was excellent in the playoffs, tallying an additional three goals and three assists in 19 games. Read the rest of this entry
Moving Hagelin hurts, but the Rangers can afford to lose him
Bobby Bevilacqua
With Carl Hegelin out of the picture for next season, the Rangers need to reach to the youth to help fill out the depth spots on the roster. Oscar Lindberg deserves a promotion next season. Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.
As fans and spectators of the game, it’s often hard to remember that hockey is a business. We grow attached to our favorite players that play hard and represent the Rangers well, only to see them traded away or lost in free agency.
Carl Hagelin was “a great Ranger” as Assistant GM Jeff Gorton said. He was a Rangers draft pick in the sixth round, and impressed as a rookie, with 14 goals and 24 assists in his first 64 NHL games. His lightning speed was fun to watch, and he was an excellent defensive player that added depth to the lineup.
Now I’m not saying that the Rangers’ didn’t lose depth or that they’re a better team after the trade. That remains to be seen. But when looking at what Glen Sather got in return as well as some other factors, the team could afford to make this decision. Read the rest of this entry
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