One dream, one realistic, and one bargain player the NY Rangers must target in NHL free agency
The NY Rangers may not have much cap space to work with in NHL free agency, but it doesn’t mean they can land a dream player at a discount.
With roughly $11.11 million in cap space to work with and a few pending free agents that general manager Chris Drury would likely be interested in re-signing; you may think the NY Rangers may only go after discounted players in NHL free agency. To an extent, you would be correct, but that’s not the entire story.
One reason is that even at lower prices, the Rangers could still bring in a worthy name who would do more than help this team fare even better in 2024-25. No, we aren’t talking about them signing a star player currently in the thick of their prime at a massive discount. But there’s plenty of talent out there who won’t seek such a large contract if it meant a legitimate chance of winning the Stanley Cup.
To that end, the Rangers could have some negotiating power over other potential buyers in free agency, even if the latter could offer more money in the short term. Let’s check out three free agents - one dream caliber who would still go a little higher than normal, one realistic signing, and one bargain name who may go well below market value.
Dream Free Agent: Steven Stamkos, C/Tampa Bay Lightning
Hey, I said we were rolling with a dream free agent and one at a potential discount if they weren’t in the middle of their prime, right? While it’s true Steven Stamkos’ previous contract sat at an AAV of $8.5 million, it’s something we can cut now that he’s entering the latter stages of his career. Stamkos earned just $6.5 million in total salary over the past two seasons, and it’s likely that number will dip even lower for his next contract.
Another reason Stamkos is listed as the ‘dream free agent’ is that he’s most likely re-signing with the Tampa Bay Lightning. But until he signs a new and likely a reduced deal in Tampa, let’s keep our options open in the hope that he may look elsewhere to sign that more cost-effective contract. With the Rangers coming close to earning a trip to the Stanley Cup Final this season, they could be on his shortlist if he indeed tests the market.
Realistic Free Agent: Dakota Joshua, W/Vancouver Canucks
The Rangers need to do all they can to beat the Florida Panthers next season, as we all know the back-to-back Eastern Conference Champions will be the ultimate measuring stick. One way to get the best of Florida is to beat them at their own hard-hitting game, and someone like Dakota Joshua could be the missing link to outmuscling a team like the Panthers.
Per Alexander MacLean of Dobber Hockey, Joshua’s AAV should sit at $2.360 million when he signs his next contract. Even with lesser cap space, that figure shouldn’t be too much trouble for Chris Drury to fit into the organization should it hold true come July and if the Canucks don’t re-sign him first.
Another reason why I like Joshua so much is that he’s yet another player in this free agency class who can add supplementary scoring. No, he won’t reach Stamkos’ productivity, which sat at 40 goals and 81 points in 2023-24, but Joshua showed us he’s effective enough to make a difference.
He only played in 63 regular season games, but it’s all he needed to snag a career-high in goals scored, assists, and points. Joshua would likely enjoy the same output with the Rangers if he joined them. And if you combined his regular season and playoff appearances, Joshua finished 76 games total with 22 goals and 18 assists, good for 40 points. Oh, and speaking of physicality, he ended the season with 319 body checks in those same 76 games, good for over four per contest.
Bargain Free Agent: Henri Jokiharju, D/Buffalo Sabres
A potential odd man out in the Sabres defensive rotation, Henri Jokiharju is a restricted free agent, but he would have a tough time carving out a role in Buffalo next season. That said, there’s a chance general manager Kevyn Adams decides not to re-sign him, which will ultimately allow Jokiharju to test the free agency market, or better yet, he can always trade his signing rights.
Admittedly, Jokiharju wouldn’t be a game-breaker, but few potential bargain free agents are. Instead, he’s got untapped two-way potential, he can be aggressive, and him being the likely odd man out with the Sabres has nothing to do with lack of productivity as much as it is lack of glamor.
Buffalo has a star player in Rasmus Dahlin, a star in the making in Owen Power, a seasoned veteran in Connor Clifton, plus high-potential players in Ryan Johnson and Bowen Byram, the latter of whom can also put up some high-scoring outings. Then there’s Mattias Samuelsson, the team’s sledgehammer, which leaves Jokiharju, at best, as a seventh defenseman in this group.
But he watched just 49 goals find the net at even strength in 74 games, which is 19 fewer than he saw last season in 60 outings. Jokiharju is also an above-average supplement when a team needs supplementation while short-handed, and he outplayed his possession quality at even strength with a plus-14 when his expected number sat at minus-1.8.
He doesn’t play the most exciting game, but the former first-round pick is an underrated player who will more than go for a discount to someone if he isn’t back in Buffalo. Again, this may be a case where a team interested in targeting Jokiharju may need to trade for him instead of signing him in free agency, but a potential acquisition would be well worth it.
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