So let’s recap where the Rangers stand regarding the salary cap after signing Chris Kreider to a two-year deal worth a $2.475 million annual cap hit minutes before Wednesday morning’s arbitration hearing was scheduled to commence:
Goaltenders Henrik Lundqvist and Cam Talbot; defensemen Ryan McDonagh, Dan Girardi, Marc Staal, Dan Boyle and Kevin Klein; centers Derek Stepan, Dominic Moore and Matt Lombardi; and wingers Kreider, Rick Nash, Mats Zuccarello, Martin St. Louis, Carl Hagelin, Lee Stempniak and Tanner Glass account for $60,012,500 in cap charges for this coming season.
That leaves the Rangers with just under $9 million to fill the following: two or three spots on defense, with one going to John Moore, a restricted free agent without arbitration rights, and the other or others a competition featuring candidates Conner Allen, Mike Kostka, Mike Hunwick and Dylan McIlrath; one spot in the middle that is reserved for Derick Brassard, who is negotiating for a long-term deal in advance of Monday’s scheduled arbitration hearing; and two or three spots on the wing, with J.T. Miller and Jesper Fast the most notable candidates currently in the picture.
A long-term deal for Brassard is likely to come with a cap hit in the neighborhood of $5.2 million to $5.6 million per season. If, however, the parties can’t agree on a multi-year contract and indeed do go to arbitration, a one-year award would likely be closer to $4.5 million.
The Rangers would then have to negotiate a long-term extension with Brassard in order to keep him off next summer’s open market as they are now charged with doing with Zuccarello, who signed a one-year, $3.5 million deal on Tuesday in advance of an arbitration hearing that had been scheduled for Friday.
John Moore, who lacks meaningful leverage, is expected to sign a one-year deal for close to his $850,000 qualifier. There is no reason for the Rangers, who are going to need to conserve space throughout the year in order to be players at the trade deadline, to throw even an extra nickel at their sixth defenseman. There is no upside to being “nice guys” in this case.
It remains to be seen whether Lombardi, who hasn’t had a productive NHL season since 2009-10 and was signed at a commensurate $800,000 per season after spending last year in the Swiss League, will be able to plug the hole in the middle created by Brad Richards’ buyout. Richards may have faded deep in the playoffs, but he was a very productive third-line center throughout the year.
Indeed, the third line, which at the moment would seem to consist of Lombardi, Stempniak and Carl Hagelin, lacks any sort of definition when compared to last season’s Hagelin-Richards-St. Louis unit that was intact down the stretch and for most of the tournament.
It will be interesting to see at training camp whether Miller lines up at center, where he would compete with Lombardi, or on the wing
Glass and Dom Moore will unite on the fourth line, with the other spot wide open. The Post has been told that though there are no plans at the moment to re-sign Dan Carcillo, the door has not been closed on the possibility.
It also remains to be seen how the Rangers will accommodate the loss of Benoit Pouliot to free agency. Pouliot gave the Rangers a physical, forecheck and net presence in complementing the creativity and skill of linemates Brassard and Zuccarello.
The Blueshirts will likely use training camp to get a look at flipping Nash back onto left wing and into that spot while St. Louis slides into Nash’s former slot on the right side of the line with Stepan at center and Kreider on the left.
If that’s the way the Rangers do go — Nash-Brassard-Zuccarello; Kreider-Stepan-St. Louis — it will be fascinating to watch against which unit opposing coaches match their first defense pair.