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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
Dominic Moore’s Smashfest IV a huge success
Bobby Bevilacqua
Dominic Moore’s fourth annual Smashfest tournament was a huge success this year. Photo courtesy of Anthony J. Causi.
This past Thursday, Dominic Moore hosted his fourth annual Smashfest IV, a ping pong tournament with current and former NHL stars, including some Rangers players, to raise money for charity, including research into concussions and rare cancers.
This year, Kevin Klein, Emerson Etem and Derick Brassard all came to support their teammate, with former Rangers Michael Del Zotto, Cam Talbot, John Mitchell and Eric Lindros joining the tournament as well.
Many people know that teams will kick around a soccer ball as a warmup before a game, but what most people don’t know is that many locker rooms have ping pong tables for the players. This inspired Moore to create a charity tournament to benefit the Katie Moore and Steve Moore Foundations. 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
Kevin Hayes destined for success in New York
Bobby Bevilacqua
Kevin Hayes had quite the spectacular rookie season in New York, and he could play an even bigger part in the Rangers offense next year. Photo courtesy of MSG Photos.
In the past, Glen Sather has gotten his fair share of criticism for signings and trades, some of it warranted. But the Rangers management doesn’t get nearly enough credit for their ability to identify young talent late in drafts or on the free agent market.
Ryan Callahan was a third round pick that turned in the Rangers captain. Carl Hagelin was a sixth round pick, and he turned into a great depth player, and a strong two-way forward. Anthony Duclair was a third Round pick. When dumping Scott Gomez’s contract, Sather was able to steal prospect Ryan McDonagh from the Montreal Canadiens, and that’s worked out quite well. And of course, Henrik Lundqvist was a seventh round pick, and he developed into one of the best goalies in the NHL.
Sather struck gold again this past offseason when he signed Kevin Hayes to a two year entry level contract. Hayes was the 24th pick overall in the 2010 draft, selected by the Chicago Blackhawks. But he decided to leave and pursue a better chance at cracking an NHL roster, eventually choosing to sign with the Rangers. Read the rest of this entry
Should the Rangers take the plunge and sign Alexander Semin?
Bobby Bevilacqua
Alexander Semin is still a free agent, and his offensive prowess could benefit the Rangers lineup. Should they sign him? Photo courtesy of Marc DesRosiers/USA TODAY Sports.
Although it’s July 19th, there are still some surprisingly good players left on the market as free agents. Eric Fehr, longtime Capitals, is still without a team. Brad Boyes is still a free agent after being bought out by the Panthers. James Sheppard is also unsigned.
But the most controversial free agent on the market is Alexander Semin, the former standout with the Capitals who was recently bought out of his contract by the Carolina Hurricanes. He was making $7 million this past season, and wound up being a healthy scratch at times, registering only 19 points in 57 games.
Semin has gotten criticism around the league for being a locker room cancer, and not the type of player that you want on a championship caliber team. But are those criticisms warranted? Read the rest of this entry
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