Derek Stepan is out of sight, out of coach Alain Vigneault’s mind and off the published roster as the Rangers head west for four days of practice followed by four exhibition matches in five days while the unsigned center remains locked in a contract dispute whose end is not in sight, either.
“At this time now, I’m functioning as if he’s not here,” Vigneault said following Wednesday’s session during which the club worked exclusively on the power play. “I look at Oscar [Lindberg], the way he’s skating. I really liked Monte Cristo, Danny [Kristo]. I really liked Danny. I like young [Jesper] Fast, also.
“[In envisioning the team], I’m looking at duos, like Richie [Brad Richards] and Nash, I’d like to see if that can work out,” he said. “I’m looking at [Derick] Brassard and [Benoit] Pouliot; I’ve looked at [Dominic] Moore or Brian Boyle with Dorsett.
“Ryan [Callahan] is not here, Haggy [Carl Hagelin] is not here and Stepan’s not here,” said Vigneault. “I’m playing the guys who are here.”
Stepan and the Rangers, as The Post has previously reported, are approximately $1 million apart over two years, with the center seeking $3.5 million per season and management having offered approximately $2.9 million a year.
Johan Hedberg opted out of his tryout agreement with the Rangers Wednesday morning when told by Vigneault he might or might not get to play one-half of the club’s final exhibition game in Las Vegas against the Kings on Sept. 27 after Henrik Lundqvist and Martin Biron play the first three matches of the trip.
Cam Talbot remains on the roster and did accompany the team on its flight Wednesday to Banff, where the Blueshirts will encamp through Sunday, but unless something unforeseen intervenes, the Lundqvist-Biron goaltending tandem will remain intact.
“We talked with [general manager] Glen [Sather] and his staff and with [goaltending coach] Benoit [Allaire], thinking about how we were going to use Henrik, and we figured with four games in five nights the best way to get him ready was to play him the first game [on Monday] in Calgary and the game [Thursday] in Vancouver,” Vigneault said. “If he’s playing those two, and I want to give a full game to Marty [Tuesday in Edmonton], then there’s only one game left [in Las Vegas].
“So I called Johan this morning and said, ‘Listen, there’s a possibility you might get half a game but there’s also a possibility you might not get a game depending on how things unfold,’” Vigneault said. “A veteran player, a guy well respected across the league, I wanted him to hear it from me and I left the decision up to him.
“He decided to stay back.”
The focus of power play work as directed by assistant Scott Arniel was quick puck movement the length of the ice, outnumbering the opposition in puck battles, and getting bodies to the front of the net.
To that latter end, Chris Kreider, on a unit with Brad Richards and Rick Nash, went to the front in mimicking the role Ryan Kesler played in Vancouver when on the power play with Daniel and Henrik Sedin.
“The front is a good place to be but it’s not an easy place to be,” Vigneault said. “You take a lot of abuse and you get hit by shots that don’t get through.
“It takes a willingness. If he ever gets comfortable doing that, that’s so tough on the opposition’s goaltender and helps you offensively five-on-five and your power play so much.”
Vigneault said cap concerns aside, he would prefer to start the season with eight defensemen and 13 forwards. In praising young winger Danny Kristo, Vigneault referred to him as “Monte Cristo.”