The New York Rangers’ most significant signing of July 1 was surprisingly not a marquee free agent. The Rangers re-signed recently acquired restricted free agent Vladislav Namestnikov to a two year ‘bridge’ deal and that’s actually ok.
The New York Rangers and General Manager Jeff Gorton wisely stood pat at the opening of free agent frenzy. They allowed other teams to sign players like Leo Komarov, Ryan Reaves and Jay Beagle to inflated contracts.
Their main splash of the day was to re-sign center/winger Vladislav Namestnikov, obtained in the trade deadline deal with the Tampa Bay Lightning, for two years at $4 million per year.
The Rangers had also obtained center/winger Ryan Spooner at the trade deadline, from the Boston Bruins. With the signing of Namestnikov, Spooner will likely be traded before the beginning of training camp.
The so-called bridge deal, has been a hallmark of Glen Sather’s and now Jeff Gorton’s tenures as Rangers GM. The practice has usually come back to bite the franchise. In the 2016 off-season, the Rangers decided to bridge both J.T. Miller and Kevin Hayes. As a result, one of them needed to be traded before or during this off-season. It ended up being Miller, with Namestnikov coincidentally coming the other way.
Just about the only exception was Ryan McDonagh in 2013 when he signed a six year contract with a $4.7 million cap hit. And what do you know, that contract was a steal for the Rangers.
When Namestnikov was signed to only a two year deal on Sunday, many viewed this as a sign that the Rangers were still too far entrenched in their old ways. However, while this may still be true, it is not a bad thing they did so, in this instance.
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How Namestnikov fits into the rebuild
At 25 years old (26 in November), Namestnikov fits in well with the new Rangers core’s age. He also showed signs of breaking out last season by tallying 48 points (22 goals). However, 40 of those points came by playing alongside Steven Stamkos and Nikita Kucherov in Tampa.
It’s clear from his production alongside the Lightning’s two forward stars that he can produce in the right environment. He was decidedly not in that right environment when he was traded to New York. This was evidenced by his two goals and two assists in 19 games after the trade deadline.
The Rangers have depth at center and a dearth of wingers, so it would make sense for Namestnikov to line up at wing. This is where he did his damage for the Lightning.
Assuming no other trades, the team’s top-six could look something like this:
Kreider – Zibanejad – Buchnevich
Zuccarello – Hayes – Namestnikov
If any one of those players is moved, then you can slide Filip Chytil into the top-six.
Currently, this group could not really match-up against real contenders’ top-sixes. However, the above is a core you can grow and build around. They would also be very exciting to watch.
Then figure that additional talent such as Chytil and Vitali Kravtsov will replace a few of the aforementioned players in a season or two. Couple them with some growth among those who stay and that top-six could do real damage in a few seasons.
With that in mind, and given his age, why wouldn’t a longer term for Namestnikov make more sense?
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Namestnikov as a trade chip
Now, when the signing was announced, Larry Brooks of the NY Post asserted that he was not signed to be traded. While that may not be their intent right now, he remains an attractive trade chip nonetheless.
From the front office’s perspective, they don’t know if the player they re-signed is more like the player that scored 20 goals in Tampa or two down the stretch in New York. From that angle, this kind of ‘show-me’ contract makes sense. Unfortunately, it does reinforce the notion that the Rangers are stuck in their old ways of doing business.
There is reason to be optimistic about Namestnikov’s production under David Quinn as he has a knack for putting players together who bring out the best in each other. The hope is he clicks with new linemates learning a new system together. Then, someone may very well throw an offer at Jeff Gorton that is too tempting to pass up at the 2019 trade deadline.
Hopefully, he pans out to be more like that 20 goal, 30 assist player that he appeared to be in Tampa. The sell is easy at that point. A team acquiring him for a playoff run and another season at a $4 million cap hit is a steal.
On the other hand, if he falters in his first full season in New York, there is no major detriment to keeping him at his cap hit. Then, they can try all over again with him the following season. Also, even if he is producing, Gorton is under no obligation to move Namestnikov for less than a fair offer.
If a season later, it’s looking like he’s pricing himself out of New York, the Rangers can still move him at the 2020 trade deadline. There are not many ways this ends poorly for the Rangers.
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Worst Case Scenario
Well, there are a few ways that this does not pan out well for the Rangers. However, keep in mind that this is still not the end of the world.
One scenario is if the front office truly intend to keep Namestnikov for the long haul, and he is that 50 point player (or more). In order to keep him, they would then have to pony up more money than they could have locked him up for on Sunday. That might mean losing another player in the process ala Miller and Hayes. If they didn’t want to pay him his worth and also hadn’t traded him at the deadline, they would them lose him for peanuts (ala Keith Yandle) or nothing.
At that point, they will have mismanaged him as they have done to so many of their young players.
The other way this ends poorly is if Namestnikov never turns the corner and is merely an ok player. Instead of being able to flip him for a net gain, the organization would then trade him for peanuts or let him walk for nothing.
Next: Rangers should give out massive one-year deals in free agency
The rebuild is going to take more than one trade deadline and one off-season. The Rangers took a low-cost flier on Namestnikov this off-season. His contract appears ideal for the team to cash in on their investment next season or the one after. The assets obtained then will further fuel the team towards contending down the road.