J.T. Miller, Jesper Fast

Fast and Miller

While all the attention lately has been on Derek Stepan and his arbitration hearing, there are three other key RFAs that need to be signed to fill out the roster. Perhaps the most important aspect of signing Emerson Etem, J.T. Miller, and Jesper Fast –who will all be getting bridge deals– is that they are going to be relatively cheap bridge deals, and will help the Rangers stay under the cap.

All three forwards are coming off their entry level deals, and all none of them have much leverage. Miller and Fast didn’t crack the NHL with any regularity until this season when they both found key roles on the Rangers. Etem still hasn’t found a regular role and, despite his talents, has spent a lot of time on the fourth line. That doesn’t make for much bargaining power.

That said, all three are going to get raises. Etem’s salary last season (salary, not cap hit) was $810,000, so his qualifying offer is $850,500. Miller’s salary was $832,500, so his qualifying offer is $874,125. Fast is actually the most expensive at the moment, as his $900,000 salary last season commands a $945,000 qualifying offer. All qualifying offers, if accepted, are for one year deals.

But these guys aren’t accepting one-year deals at under $1 million. Or at least they shouldn’t, despite what some in the media are saying (hoping?). It is much more likely that the Rangers try and get these guys to sign two-year bridge deals. While I’m not a huge fan of bridge deals because they can lead to the current situation with Derek Stepan, I am perfectly fine with players like Etem, Miller, and Fast, who have yet to prove much at the NHL level, getting a “show me” deal.

emerson etem

Etem

While all three will probably come cheap, the exact amount is still up in the air. Folks have them ranging from their QO numbers to $1.5 million. The actual numbers are going to be somewhere in between, and probably slightly higher than the middle ground.

Riley Sheahan of Detroit is the first comparable contract I could find for Miller. The final year of his ELC paid him $740,000, but he carried a cap hit of $785,000. These numbers are lower than both Miller, but the production is relatively on par for both. Sheahan put up 9-15-24 in his contract year, almost identical to Miller’s 10-13-23.

Miller’s final year’s salary on his ELC was $47,500, or 6%, higher than Sheahan’s. Sheahan’s bridge deal was two years at a $950,000 cap hit. Using that 6% increase for Miller, you get to $1.007 million. It’s not an exact science, and Miller may be slotted to get a bit more because his AHL stats were better, although that may be canceled out by Sheahan’s better rates (he played 16 fewer games). I’d peg Miller for two years, between $1 million and $1.1 million.

Sticking with Detroit, Joakim Andersson’s second contract, which was signed after the 2012-2013 season, looks to be a comparable for both Fast and Etem. The production for all three is similar, but his salary at the end of his ELC was significantly lower than both. Andersson’s $732,500 cap hit in his second deal was a 20% increase on his ELC cap hit.

Using that 20% calculator for Etem, we get a two year deal at $1.044 million. Using the same math on Fast, and you get a two year deal at $966,000. That dollar amount for Fast seems pretty solid. Etem’s may be a bit too high, so we can round down to an even $1 million.

These three are going to be relatively inexpensive, especially on bridge deals. The median cap space to set aside for the trio was about $3 million, or $1 million per player. Miller will be the most expensive, so pegging him for two years and $1.1 million seems about right. Etem and Fast should come in around $1 million. Hopefully, all three are bargains while the Rangers live with some cap issues.

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