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Rangers ink Lias Andersson to entry level deal
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The “Lias Andersson may make the club out of camp” train just got a big push. The Rangers inked the 7th overall pick this year to a three year entry level deal. It’s expected that it will be around $925,000 salary with bonuses.
The Rangers have a pretty big hole at center that they have yet to fill. The trade market has some options, but the free agent market is completely bare. Andersson would certainly fill that hole, but if that’s the case, it forces Mika Zibanejad and Kevin Hayes into the 1C and 2C roles, respectively.
All eyes are going to be on the kid. No pressure.
Could St. Louis be a trade match for the Rangers?
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One of the last holes the Rangers need to fill is a top-six center, and with the free agent market bare, a trade is the next best option. As the offseason progresses, it becomes easier to identify trade partners for the Rangers to address this issue. Jeff Gorton also needs to address the logjam on the blue line, possibly leveraging the monster offensive season from Nick Holden.
Looking through the rosters, the St. Louis Blues seem to have the opposite problem. With 15 forwards –14 if you don’t include Klim Kostin, their first rounder this year)– and just five defensemen signed, there’s a potential match with the Rangers.
Does Lindy Ruff’s hire put pressure on Alain Vigneault?
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It’s been a bit of a wild offseason for the Rangers, but one of the less talked about moves was a change behind the bench. Jeff Beukeboom fell on the sword for the poor defensive play, and was replaced by Lindy Ruff. Ruff has been a head coach in the NHL since 1997, mostly with the Sabres before a stint with the Stars.
Ruff is an interesting hire. When he was in Dallas, he ran very similar systems to Alain Vigneault. Specifically, his Stars teams were big on a 1-2-2 forecheck with a hybrid zone/man defensive zone coverage. Special teams play isn’t all that unique anymore, but it’s worth noting that his penalty killing style was also aggressive, like AV.
Kevin Klein officially retires
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As broken last week, Kevin Klein was set to retire. His official retirement announcement came this morning. Klein retires after 12 seasons, three with the Rangers.
The Rangers acquired Klein in 2014 for Michael Del Zotto to help solidify the right side of the defense. Klein was somewhat of a marvel on Broadway, setting career highs in goals, assists, and points. Back injuries derailed Klein the last few seasons, which only exacerbated his skating issues.
Klein retires with a line of 38-116-154 in 627 games.
Mika ZIbanejad files for arbitration
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Mika Zibanejad has formally filed for salary arbitration, which comes as no surprise. I feel like I write this every year, but this is just a formal step in the process. The Rangers haven’t had a player actually go to arbitration since Nik Zherdev. Sean Avery also went to arbitration in 2007.
Zibanejad and the Rangers will likely hammer out a deal before the arbitration date. With Zibanejad filing for arbitration, the Rangers have a second buyout window open to them in August. They likely won’t use it, but it will be open. This also protects Zibanejad from an offer sheet.
Oddly enough, Jesper Fast also filed for arbitration. I’m assuming he just filed the paper work before the deal was announced. Just a formality.
Rangers, Fast agree to three year contract extension
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(Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke)
The Rangers and RFA Jesper Fast have agreed to terms on a three year contract extension worth $1.85 million per season. Fast has been one of the most versatile Rangers in recent memory, sliding up and down the lineup with relative ease.
The former 6th round pick will remain a Ranger through his age-28 season. The deal is certainly a little more than I had expected, but it’s worth it to keep Fast here. He’s one of those guys that does the little things very well.
Rangers to sign David Desharnais?
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Per Tour Sur Le Hockey (French), the Rangers are looking to bring in David Desharnais to bolster their center depth. No details have been confirmed yet, but it per the report, it should be finalized soon. The 30-year-old center put up 60 points in 2011-2012, but has had his point totals decrease in every season since.
Desharnais has been hampered by injuries over the past few seasons, which has certainly impacted his point totals. His underlying numbers are in line with a good 4C and a bottom-tier 3C, which sounds about right. This would certainly fill the void left by Oscar Lindberg.
July 4th musings
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Happy Fourth of July everyone. Enjoy the day off with some musings of the Rangers’ offseason thus far.
- Jeff Gorton has had an interesting offseason. It’s clear his goal was to upgrade the defense, and he did just that by buying out Dan Girardi, re-signing Brendan Smith, and signing Kevin Shattenkirk. He got a bonus in Kevin Klein’s retirement. So on that front, so far so good.
- The top four on the blue line, as mentioned yesterday could be the best in the Metro Division. It has established puck movers who are solid two-way defensemen. This top-four will help resolve the issue the Blueshirts had with zone exits last year.
With Shattenkirk, the Rangers have the best top-four in the Metro
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Last summer Jeff Gorton made the Rangers into one of the most dynamic scoring machines in the league. The forwards were vastly improved and they could seemingly score at will. But that dried up against the good teams in the playofs because the defense simply couldn’t keep up. That made Gorton’s for this summer goal clear: Fix the defense.
By buying out Dan Girardi, essentially replacing him with Kevin Shattenkirk, and re-signing Brendan Smith, the Rangers have what could potentially be the best top-four in the Metro Division. A potential pairing of Shattenkirk with Ryan McDonagh also gives the Rangers what could be a top pairing that is top-five in the league. No hyperbole.
Hot take thoughts following the first day of free agency
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The Rangers landed the biggest prize in the free agent market yesterday, inking Kevin Shattenkirk to a four year deal worth $6.65 million per season. It was the only major move made by the Blueshirts, as it left them with a bit over $8 million in cap space, which meant they were out of the running for Joe Thornton and/or Patrick Marleau. As always, I have some quick thoughts.
- Shattenkirk wanted to be a Ranger. Larry Brooks said that he came to the Rangers with that offer, which left a significant amount of money on the table. That speaks volumes for how badly he wanted to come here.