As anticipated, the New York Rangers have signed their top prospect, Vitali Kravtsov and top goalie prospect Igor Shesterkin to three-year entry level contracts.
The New York Rangers have signed their top prospect to a three year contract. Vitali Kravtsov signed a three year entry level contract for the maximum $925,000 per year. Within minutes of the Kravtsov signing, the Blueshirts announced that Shersterkin had also signed.
OFFICIAL: #NYR have agreed to terms on an entry-level contract with forward Vitali Kravtsov and with goaltender Igor Shesterkin. pic.twitter.com/HSQvRt6gbW
— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) May 3, 2019
Vitali Kravtsov
The details of the Kravtsov contract were reported by capfriendly.com and the agreement includes a European Assignment clause. That would mean that Kravtsov would have the right to play in Europe if he is not on the Rangers roster.
Chances are slim that he will not be on the major league roster, though he could see some time in Hartford getting acclimated to the smaller North American ice rinks.
Kravtsov’s stock has been steadily rising. In January, TSN’s Craig Button ranked him as the top NHL-Affiliated prospect in hockey. There was some consternation last June when the Rangers picked Kravtsov with the ninth overall pick.
TSN ranked him 12th overall while The Hockey News ranked him 24th and he wasn’t among the top prospects ranked according to ISS Hockey. NHL Central Scouting did rank him third among European skaters.
Kravtsov turned 19 in December. As a teenager, he had eight goals and 21 points for Chelyabinsk Traktor in the KHL. He was the top scoring player in the league under the age of 20.
Igor Shesterkin
There are no details available on the entry level contract for Shesterkin, but it should be for the maximum $925,000. The key question for him will be if there is a European Assignment Clause. With Henrik Lundqvist and Alexandar Georgiev already on the team, it is very likely that Shesterkin will see action in the AHL.
With Lundqvist under contract for two more years, the team will have a juggling act when it comes to Shesterkin and Georgiev and they don’t want to alienate either of their two young goaltenders.
Shesterkin, 23, had another fantastic year with St. Petersburg SKA, with a 24-4 record, a goals against average of 1.11 and a .953 save percentage.
The Rangers picked Shesterkin in the fourth round of the 2014 entry draft (#118 overall).
This comes on the heels of Adam Fox signing his entry level deal and it means that even before the Rangers select second in the 2019 Entry Draft, they will have three top prospects vying for roster spots.