New York Rangers Up for Contract – Restricted Free Agents

New York Rangers Looking for Extensions

The New York Rangers are in an interesting position and it is unclear which direction upper-management will take this summer. It will all become more clear with time, but the only options the New York Rangers organization has is either a total overhaul of their core, or resigning a majority of their free agents, while tinkering with a few other problemed positions.

There are quite a few players that will become either unrestricted or restricted free agents this summer. Here is a full list of everyone that was a roster player this season and will become restricted free agents this summer. Another article will come shortly with a list of unrestricted free agents.

Restricted Free Agents

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• Chris Kreider – Forward – Arbitration Eligible
  • 79 Games Played
  • 21 Goals
  • 22 Assists
  • 43 Total Points
• Kevin Hayes – Center – Arbitration Eligible
  • 79 Games Played
  • 14 Goals
  • 22 Assists
  • 36 Total Points
• J.T. Miller – Center/Forward – Arbitration Eligible
  •  82 Games Played
  • 22 Goals
  • 21 Assists
  • 43 Total Points
• Marek Hrivik – Forward – Arbitration Eligible
  • 4 Games Played with New York Rangers
    • 1 Assists
    • 1 Total Point
  • 68 Games Played with Wolf Pack
    • 12 Goals
    • 29 Assists
    • 41 Total Points
• Dylan McIlrath – Defense – Arbitration Eligible
  • 34 Games Played
  • 2 Goals
  • 2 Assists
  • 4 Total Points
  • +/- of 7

Unappreciated and/or Underpaid

Due to the fact that each of these players are arbitration eligible, most of them will be seen in blue sweaters again next season. The only variable that may change this is cost.

For example, Dylan McIlrath’s contract this past season was $600,000 and he is worth more. However, Alain Vigneault’s hesitation to play him frequently might cause Gorton to undervalue him. If that happens then we may see him leave.

On the other hand, the fact that he only played in 34 games this year may help the Rangers. The NHL only has a small sample size of games to evaluate McIlrath, so as a whole, NHL GMs may also undervalue him. That would be best case scenario, because then the New York Rangers could restructure his contract and for cheap. Dylan McIlrath is a great young player and deserves more ice time with the New York Rangers.

With the departure of Dan Boyle, McIlrath has a chance to play in a majority of games next season. However, he will be competing with another young star for ice time, Bray Skjei. Skjei, who unlike McIlrath was given ample ice time this postseason, has proven his worth and it would be a shame to see him wither away in the AHL. Brady, has proven that he cannot only hang with NHL superstars, like Crosby, but he can defend them extremely well.

J.T. Miller also made a splash in his rookie season. His contract will need to be reworked this summer and he will cost the New York Rangers more than the $874,000 they paid him this year. He has even been named to Team North America and will compete in the World Cup of Hockey this Fall.

Miller played in 82 games and he did make rookie mistakes from time-to-time, but he has been nationally recognized as an up-and-coming Center/Forward and does posses the skill set to play on as a first or second liner in a year or two.

Kevin Hayes and Chris Kreider

Kevin Hayes and Chris Kreider have proven their worth to the New York Rangers organization. Both players appeared in 79 games this year for the Blueshirts. Kevin Hayes’ production slipped a little from the 2014-2015 season, scoring three less goals and recording six less assists, but this could be in large part to the fact that AV paired Eric Staal with Hayes for the majority of the New York Rangers final 20 games.

Eric Staal’s acquisition never seemed to gel with the rest of the team and although Hayes’ production may have fallen during his time on ice with Staal, Kreider was able to find a way to keep adding to his point total. Kredier propelled himself to become one of the teams top offensive threats towards the end of the season. He recorded nine points in the teams final eight games before the playoffs. However, his season totals slid a tad.

Chris Kreider saw a slight drop in production from the 2014-2015 season. He played in one less game this season and recorded three fewer assists, but that is nothing to get upset about at.

Next: New York Rangers Shake Up their Blue Line

Both Hayes and Kreider should be shoe-ins to play for the Rangers next season, but they will also want more money. Currently Hayes is making a nice 3.75 million per year as Kreider’s seasonal pay check came in at a smooth 2.475 million. How much the New York Rangers shell out for these two players will have to do with their market value, but I do not believe the Rangers can afford to lose either player.

Hayes is about to turn 24 and Kreider will celebrate his 25th birthday this Saturday. The New York Rangers cannot afford to give away young talent, especially since they have traded a fair share of draft picks for rental players over the past couple years. Those moves to pick up older players right before the trade deadline is the exact reason why the New York Rangers find themselves making the playoffs consistently, but now struggle to maintain a high level competitiveness when powerhouse teams like the Capitals and Penguins skate into MSG.