New York Rangers and Pavel Buchnevich bet on each other

Christmas in July is all the rage this week and the New York Rangers delivered the perfect gift to their fans after signing Pavel Buchnevich to a new deal.

After weeks of speculation that the big Russian could be on the trade block, the New York Rangers announced on Friday that they had given the forward a two-year, $6.5 million deal which carries an average annual value of $3.25 million.

Not only did the Blueshirts lock up one of their main assets who appears to be on the cusp of fully unlocking his potential, but they avoided having to go through an arbitration hearing and dealing with the potential fallout a process such as that may bring to the door.

It is now another box that has been ticked off on the hefty offseason to do list but there is still plenty of work ahead for the Rangers front office. Brendan Lemieux and Tony DeAngelo still need paying, the question marks over Chris Kreider‘s immediate future still loom large and there are all sorts of buyout possibilities now. I recommend that you read this excellent breakdown from our very own Steve Paulus on what Buchnevich’s new contract means for the Blueshirts’ salary cap.

But, shifting the focus back on to Buchnevich, this was another masterstroke by General Manager Jeff Gorton, who will no doubt be benefitting from having a vastly experienced figure in President John Davidson working beside him and being on hand to offer his expertise and wealth of knowledge from a lifetime of being involved in hockey, be it as a player, analyst or front office executive.

This is a bridge deal and it is basically a pact between two parties, a two-way gamble if you like. It is the Rangers laying the gauntlet down to Buchnevich and telling him to continue his upward trend and earn a monster payday once this new deal expires after 2020-21.

It is also a show of faith from Buchnevich himself, both in his ability and in the Rangers as a franchise. He’s gambling on himself to live up to the high potential that has surrounded him ever since he was taken by the Blueshirts with the 75th overall pick in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft.

Buchnevich is also putting his trust in the only team he’s ever called home since making the jump to North America. He could have pushed for more money or left it up to the arbitrators to decide his short-term salary, but he can clearly see what is being built and constructed at Madison Square Garden and is probably, like the rest of us, excited about the future of this storied franchise.

Having only had one brief taste of the postseason back in 2016-17, where he tallied one point in five games, Buchnevich will no doubt be hungry for more and there is a good chance that those cravings will be satisfied sooner rather than later given the course the Rangers are currently on.

They have placed this rebuild in turbocharge and have added key pieces such as Artemi Panarin, Adam Fox, Jacob Trouba and of course Kaapo Kakko with the No.2 overall pick in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft. The front office has made their intentions crystal clear with the aggressive moves they’ve made to significantly bolster and improve this team, and that should be a huge sign of encouragement for players like Buchnevich who are already deeply embedded within the fabric of this team.

Gorton and Davidson have injected elite talent into the veins of this roster and, by signing Panarin and Trouba to lengthy seven-year deals, they are making it abundantly clear that they aren’t interested in a one-and-done situation. This franchise isn’t attracted by the allure of competing for one championship, they want to have the chance of winning multiple Stanley Cups and becoming the next powerhouse dynasty in the NHL. The slew of moves made this summer is a perfect illustration of that intent.

Now it is up to Buchnevich. The franchise have let their expectations known by offering a bridge deal and they will be prepared to stump up even more cash should the 24-year-old morph into the player we all know he’s capable of becoming.

But that’s the big question. There are no concrete guarantees in sports and we live in a ‘what have you done for us lately’ society. Last season, where Buchnevich tallied 21 goals and 17 assists for 38 points, is now gone and all eyes will be on whether or not the lefthanded shot can take that next big leap.

He has momentum on his side of course, having achieved career-highs in goals and points per game (0.59) last year, despite missing 13 games with a broken thumb. He shrugged off an abysmal first-half of the season by going on an absolute tear in the latter stages of 2018-19, racking up 12 goals and 20 points in the last 25 games of the regular season.

Buchnevich also showed signs of maturity, finally responding to head coach David Quinn’s tough love approach and a some games in the press box as a healthy scratch by buying into Quinn’s shoot first philosophy, grinding hard every night and learning to battle and grind in the corners and in the defensive zone.

However, as already mentioned, that was then and this is now. Buchnevich faces a colossal training camp where he will get the chance to slug it out for a spot on the top line and an opportunity to form one of the deadliest lines in all of hockey alongside Mika Zibanejad and Artemi Panarin. Kaapo Kakko will be his main competition for that role and it should be a fascinating and hugely competitive battle.

Should Buchnevich come out on top in that particular dogfight then he will be able to elevate his game and will no doubt benefit from having an elite playmaker like Panarin on his line. Panarin will open up space for his line-mates and you can just imagine Buchnevich letting rip with one of his deadly releases from a silky Breadman dish. Plus, we already know the chemistry that exists between Buchnevich and Zibanejad from the large sample size they had together last year, having played on a line with each other for 15.21 percent of the season.

All in all, the deal is done and the stage is now set for Pavel Buchnevich to take his game to the next level, evolve into a consistent top-six forward who can put up 40-50 points every year and put himself in line for a gigantic payday in the summer of 2021. The bets have been placed and it is now on Buchnevich to ensure that the gamble pays off.