New York Rangers 15 Best Contracts (2005-2022)

This was originally published in my 2020 book Hunting Bargains in a Salary Cap World, and has now been updated with new contracts. I will continue to update each team’s list every summer going forward. The rule is that only active contracts can move up or down. Expired deals cannot pass each other. Next summer it may even be expanded to top 20. The book is still available on Amazon, though some of the stats on active contracts are now out of date. You may yet find it interesting because there were detailed stat graphics that you won't find here. One thing you won't find here are entry level contracts because they all come from the same cookie cutter and require less skill at the negotiating table.

My latest book The Hockey Economist’s Betting Prospectus is now available. It's a comprehensive commentary on the last 3 years of hockey betting, broken down by team, by category, by strategy, by season. There is plenty of useful information for bettors of all skill levels. It covers pre-pandemic, peak-pandemic, post-pandemic. What worked, what failed. Lessons learned, market trends, team-by-team analysis. What impact did the pandemic have on hockey betting? The market differences between these 3 seasons are discussed at length, and there's a lot to talk about. To read more, visit the Amazon store.

If you’d like to browse my other best/worst contract lists, click here. Enjoy! 

Please note: The formatting on the graphics got scrambled being copied from Excel into Google Blogger. It's among the reasons my blog is looking for a new home.

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The New York Rangers had missed the playoffs for 7 consecutive seasons prior to the introduction of the salary cap, despite spending boatloads of money and being 75% of the reason the league needed a hard cap in the first place. The struggling (but rich) franchise would find salvation when King Henry Lundqvist arrived on an airplane from Europe. The team made the playoffs 11 times in the next 12 years including 3 trips to the conference final and 1 crack at the Cup. They made another trip to the conference final in 2022.
 
Glen Sather had his hands on the steering wheel from 2000 to 2015, but before we go crediting his genius for the Rangers playoff success, his autograph is also on some of the league’s worst contracts signed in the cap era. You may want to wait and read the Rangers worst contracts list before anointing his tenure a success. His greatest accomplishment was the acquisition of Lundqvist, and like with Montreal, a great goaltender helped cover up some terrible mistakes.
 
 
1. Henrik Lundqvist
 

Signed By:	Glen Sather		Position:	G
Date:	2008-02-14		Age July 1st:	26
Term:	6 years		Playoff Wins:	32
Total Money:	$41.3M		Playoff SV%:	0.927
Cap Hit:	$6.9M		Stanley Cups:	0

 

	Avg Adj Cap Hit	GP	W	GAA	SV%
Total	9.3	379	205	2.26	0.922

"I said since Day One that I really like New York”

– Henrik Lundqvist

Henrik Lundqvist was among the NHL’s best goaltenders from the moment he arrived in North America, finishing top 4 in Vezina trophy voting both years of his ELC. For as much as Henrik Lundqvist loves New York, he certainly did not take a hometown discount to remain a Ranger. The Swede was a year away from unrestricted free agency, so retaining him on a long-term deal was going to require an unrestricted price. Glen Sather would make Hank the highest paid goaltender in the league, which he would remain until overtaken by Pekka Rinne in 2013.
 
They paid for the best and received one of the best, with 6 seasons of double-digit goals saved above average. He was always in the conversation for the Vezina trophy, winning the award in 2012.
 
 
2. Igor Shesterkin
 

Signed By:	Chris Drury		Position:	G
Date:	2021-08-09		Age July 1st:	25
Term:	4 years		Playoff Wins:	10
Total Money:	$22.6M		Playoff SV%:	0.929
Cap Hit:	$5.7M		Stanley Cups:	0

 

	Avg Adj Cap Hit	GP	W	GAA	SV%
Total	5.7	53	36	2.07	0.935

"'Shesty' is everything for us. He's been unreal. I've only played with him this past year, but the things he's doing, his work ethic off the ice, is just as good as his work ethic on the ice. He's literally our backstop. He's a great leader."

– K’Andre Miller

Igor Shesterkin and Ilya Sorokin have a lot in common, aside from being young Russian goaltenders in New York. Both were top quality gatekeepers from the moment they arrived in the NHL and signed similar bridge deals after their ELCs (Shesterkin for an extra year and a little more money). Igor posted an impressive .932 SV% in his first 12 games, then wrapped up his ELC with a respectable .916. 

Then in year one of this contract, Shesterkin’s 3rd year in the NHL, he posted an incredible .935 SV% and won the Vezina trophy. If that wasn’t enough, he led the Rangers all the way to the conference final with a .929 SV%. This was voted the 3rd best contract in the entire league in my 2022 best contract Twitter poll.
 
 
3. Mika Zibanejad
 

Signed By:	Jeff Gorton		Position:	F
Date:	2017-07-25		Age July 1st:	24
Term:	5 years		Playoff GP:	20
Total Money:	$26.8M		Playoff PTS:	24
Cap Hit:	$5.4M		Stanley Cups:	0

 

	Adj Cap Hit	GP	PTS	SOG	ATOI
Total	27.7	348	327	1046
Per 82 GP	5.5	82	77	246	19.9

"I'm super happy a deal got done. I'm super happy to be staying in New York for the next five years and I'm really, really looking forward to next season."

– Mika Zibanejad

Mika Zibanejad was seeking a 1-year contract for $5.35M in the summer of 2017 after scoring above a 50-point pace for back-to-back seasons. It was a fair price for his services, but certainly was not a discount. Jeff Gorton countered that the price was fair if it was attached to more term, and the two sides agreed on a 5-year ticket that sold 2 years of unrestricted free agency. This was very similar to the deal the Rangers signed with Derick Brassard a few years earlier, who ironically enough was the main chip heading to Ottawa in the Zibanejad trade. More recently Jonathan Drouin and Brayden Schenn had agreed to similar terms.
 
Year one of this accord was decidedly mediocre, but by the 2nd season Mika evolved into a higher-level point producer, potting 30 goals and 74 PTS. By year three when Artemi Panarin came to town, Zibanejad scored at a 108-point pace while missing some time due to injury (and he didn’t even play with Artemi 5v5). He became criminally underpaid.
 
 
4. Adam Fox
 

Signed By:	Chris Drury		Position:	D
Date:	2021-11-01		Age July 1st:	24
Term:	7 years		Playoff GP:	0
Total Money:	$66.5M		Playoff PTS:	0
Cap Hit:	$9.5M		Stanley Cups:	0

 

	Adj Cap Hit	GP	PTS	SOG	ATOI
Total	66.5	0	0	0
Per 82 GP	9.5	0	0	0	0.0

"It has been a privilege for us, and our fans, to watch Adam showcase his ability on a nightly basis, and we are glad to have that opportunity for seven more years."

– Chris Drury

Adam Fox won the Norris trophy as the NHL’s best defenseman in just his second season when he scored a 70-point pace. That’s a rare distinction that simplifies the negotiating process. It’s hard for the GM to argue that you’re not worth whatever price you’re asking if you’ve won this level of hardware. Fox will undoubtedly receive multiple Norris nominations over the course of these 7 years, maybe even win another if Cale Makar suffers an injury. 

This was not a cheap price tag and can’t be considered a “bargain”, but the puck moving blueliner is still worth every penny. Maybe when the salary cap jumps up and other D-men start signing for more, we’ll look at this cap hit with amazement.
 
 
5. Ryan McDonagh
 

Signed By:	Glen Sather		Position:	D
Date:	2013-07-08		Age July 1st:	24
Term:	6 years		Playoff GP:	80
Total Money:	$28.2M		Playoff PTS:	38
Cap Hit:	$4.7M		Stanley Cups:	0

 

	Adj Cap Hit	GP	PTS	SOG	ATOI
Total	32.4	443	227	818
Per 82 GP	5.4	82	42	151	23.3

"As a player, you want to have that security, but you want to make sure the team feels confident in you, and it's great to see the Rangers show the confidence in me as far as the terms and the years and everything together. It's just a great feeling."

– Ryan McDonagh

Over the last 2 years of Ryan McDonagh’s entry level contract, the young defenseman was 10th in the NHL for total minutes played. He quickly became a workhorse on the Rangers blueline, earning himself a big 6-year commitment from a General Manager who had long shown a preference for squeezing his young RFAs into short-term bridge deals. Ryan negotiated a similar salary as Alex Goligoski one year earlier, but with more term. There would be a chain reaction of comparables following McDonagh, starting with Justin Faulk 8 months later.
 
The offensive component of Ryan’s game was about to take a big step forward, netting 43 PTS in year one. Not only did he average 42 PTS and 23.3 minutes of ice time over this span, he also finished with a +126 rating. To put a nice cherry on top, he added 38 PTS in 80 playoff games. McDonagh was traded to Tampa with 1-year remaining. Ryan forfeited 3 years of unrestricted free agency, potentially limiting what he would be able to procure when he became UFA at age 30, but fortunately for him, the Lightning handed him $47M.
 
 
6. Artemi Panarin
‘

Signed By:	Jeff Gorton		Position:	F
Date:	2019-07-01		Age July 1st:	27
Term:	7 years		Playoff GP:	20
Total Money:	$81.2M		Playoff PTS:	16
Cap Hit:	$11.6M		Stanley Cups:	0

 

	Adj Cap Hit	GP	PTS	SOG	ATOI
Total	81.6	186	249	492
Per 82 GP	11.7	82	110	217	19.8

"He loves to score, he loves to win. I think he's going to love everything about playing for the New York Rangers."

– John Davidson

Artemi Panarin was the big prize of the summer class of 2019, as the Russian won the lottery following an 87-point season, earning himself the nickname “breadman”. This was by no means a discount or a bargain. No winger had signed for even close to this much money since Patrick Kane 5 years earlier. Nikita Kucherov and Mark Stone were the nearest, earning $2M less in annual salary (although take-home pay will be similar after factoring in state taxes). While several teams were no doubt involved in the bidding, it had long been rumoured that Panarin wanted to play in New York specifically.
 
While this might have been an expensive price to pay, Artemi proved to be worth every penny in year one, scoring 95 PTS in 69 GP while playing mostly with Ryan Strome and Jesper Fast 5v5. The only lingering question going forward is how well he ages, as more than half of the deal will take place after his 30th birthday. I’m taking a leap of faith that he’ll continue to put bread on the table for the remaining term.
 
 
7. Michal Rozsival
 

Signed By:	Glen Sather		Position:	D
Date:	2006-08-01		Age July 1st:	27
Term:	2 years		Playoff GP:	20
Total Money:	$4.2M		Playoff PTS:	13
Cap Hit:	$2.1M		Stanley Cups:	0

 

	Adj Cap Hit	GP	PTS	SOG	ATOI
Total	7.4	160	78	231
Per 82 GP	3.7	82	40	118	24.2

"The way we play team defense is what makes our team good defensively and what makes us look good too. You have forwards that are backchecking in good positions and Hank is playing great and that makes our job easier.”

– Michael Rozsival

Michal Rozsival went to unrestricted free agency as a 27-year-old right shot defenseman with 319 career games who had just completed a 30-point campaign. The stars should have been aligned for the Czech defender to get paid a higher sum, but instead he went unsigned into August before returning to the Rangers on a cheap 2-year bridge deal. A serious knee injury suffered in 2004 might have scared other teams away from a long-term commitment. Four months earlier, Denis Gauthier had signed a very similar deal after scoring 11 PTS and averaging only 16.5 minutes per game.
 
While Gauthier was on his way down, Michal was on his way up. He would average over 24 minutes per game of ice time while notching 78 PTS in 160 GP.  The Rangers rewarded him with $20M at the end of this, which you can read about on their worst contracts list.
 
 
8. Mats Zuccarelo
 

Signed By:	Glen Sather		Position:	F
Date:	2015-03-02		Age July 1st:	27
Term:	4 years		Playoff GP:	30
Total Money:	$18M		Playoff PTS:	20
Cap Hit:	$4.5M		Stanley Cups:	0

 

	Adj Cap Hit	GP	PTS	SOG	ATOI
Total	19.9	289	213	637
Per 82 GP	5.0	82	60	181	18.9

"It's where I want to be. I want to try to win with this team. This feels like home."

– Mats Zuccarello

Mats Zuccarello was a late bloomer who did not earn a full-time roster spot until age 26 when he broke out with a 59-point season in 2014. He was scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1st 2015, but decided to stay in New York before he could reach the open market. It’s unlikely that the Norwegian winger would have been able to solicit much more than this, which was expensive for his most recent stat line. Mats instead received a very similar contract to what Nikolay Kulemin and Clarke MacArthur had signed for in the previous year with weaker statistics.
 
Zuccarello would become a valuable contributor to the Rangers, averaging 60 PTS per 82 GP and nearly 19 minutes per game of ice time over these 4 years. The Rangers shipped him to Dallas as a rental for conditional 2nd and 3rd round draft picks. Afterwards Paul Fenton stepped up to the plate and gave Mats $30M to come to Minnesota. Fenton was fired shortly thereafter.
 
 
9. Dan Girardi
 

Signed By:	Glen Sather		Position:	D
Date:	2010-07-09		Age July 1st:	26
Term:	4 years		Playoff GP:	62
Total Money:	$13.3M		Playoff PTS:	23
Cap Hit:	$3.3M		Stanley Cups:	0

 

	Adj Cap Hit	GP	PTS	SOG	ATOI
Total	17.4	289	98	413
Per 82 GP	4.4	82	28	117	24.8

"I wanted to stay in New York so bad, and I was really happy that we were able to get something done for a long term. I really wanted to be a Ranger, and I want to be a Ranger forever. I don't want to go anywhere else.”

– Dan Girardi

Dan Girardi still had never surpassed the 30-point threshold in his career, but had been averaging 21.6 minutes per game over the previous 3 seasons when it came time for a new deal in July 2010. Dan could have been an unrestricted free agent in one year, but instead choose to yield 3 UFA seasons when Sather offered him a similar contract to the one signed by his former defense partner Fedor Tyutin 2 years earlier. Dan seemed desperate to stay in New York and was not terribly concerned about rushing to the open market.
 
Girardi’s role on the Rangers would soon expand, logging heavy minutes in both the regular seasons and playoffs on a very good Rangers team. Dan would average 28 PTS per 82 GP with 24.8 minutes per game of ice time. But buyer beware, there was $33M waiting for him when this deal expired, which you can read about on the Rangers worst contracts list.
 
 
10. Brandon Dubinsky
 

Signed By:	Glen Sather		Position:	F
Date:	2009-09-19		Age July 1st:	23
Term:	2 years		Playoff GP:	5
Total Money:	$3.7M		Playoff PTS:	3
Cap Hit:	$1.85M		Stanley Cups:	0

 

	Adj Cap Hit	GP	PTS	SOG	ATOI
Total	5.3	146	98	367
Per 82 GP	2.6	82	55	206	19.9

"There's definitely going to be questions - 'Is he ready to go, because he's missed a week now? Is he fit enough? Will he be prepared to start the season?' They're all valid questions. I've just got to prove I'm prepared."

– Brandon Dubinsky

Brandon Dubinsky had produced back-to-back 40+ point seasons coming out of entry level and went unsigned into training camp the following season. Glen Sather played hardball and won, getting Dubinsky on an even cheaper bridge deal than Ryan Callahan received 2 months earlier. The two had produced similar stat lines, but Dubinsky as a center should have been worth at least the same money, if not more. The biggest difference being that Callahan was a year older.
 
The Rangers would capture “peak Dubinsky” on this pact, with a career high 24 goals and 54 PTS in year two. Brandon scored 20+ goals both seasons and never breached that milestone again.
 
 
11. Anthony DeAngelo
 

Signed By:	Jeff Gorton		Position:	D
Date:	2019-09-20		Age July 1st:	23
Term:	1 year		Playoff GP:	0
Total Money:	$920K		Playoff PTS:	0
Cap Hit:	$920K		Stanley Cups:	0

 

	Adj Cap Hit	GP	PTS	SOG	ATOI
Total	0.9	68	53	149
Per 82 GP	0.9	82	64	180	19.3

"I always felt comfortable that Tony, his agent and I would make a deal. At the end of the day I think he realized the situation was what it was, it was going to be a one-year deal and that it was probably smart to get in here and start playing.”

– Jeff Gorton

Tony DeAngelo wrapped up his entry level contract with a stellar 30-point performance, which should have been worth a contract in the $4M range. But after the Rangers landed Artemi Panarin on July 1st, they were facing a difficult salary cap situation heading into the fall and opted to play hardball. Tony has had a controversial career off the ice, and lacked arbitration rights, which gave him no leverage whatsoever.
 
The Rangers were deep on the blueline and could afford to have the kid hold out. Luckily for both sides, an agreement was reached on September 20th, allowing him to start the season in the NHL. This was among the lowest payouts any free agent defenseman under the age of 30 has received for a 30-point season.
 
Anthony proceeded to break out in a big way, scoring 53 PTS in 68 GP. I personally attended a Rangers game during that run, and it seemed like the puck was on DeAngelo’s stick the entire game. He received a significant raise on his next deal, which you can read about on their worst contracts list.
 
 
12. Pavel Buchnevich
 

Signed By:	Jeff Gorton		Position:	F
Date:	2019-07-26		Age July 1st:	24
Term:	2 years		Playoff GP:	0
Total Money:	$6.5M		Playoff PTS:	0
Cap Hit:	$3.25M		Stanley Cups:	0

 

	Adj Cap Hit	GP	PTS	SOG	ATOI
Total	6.6	122	94	268
Per 82 GP	3.3	82	63	180	17.7

"There’s only so much cap space to go around and there’s only so much ice time to go around.”

– Chris Drury

In the final year of his ELC, Pavel Buchnevich scored at a 49-point pace that was worth approximately $3.2M according to my algorithm. The Rangers gave him almost exactly what he was worth. In year one he scored at a 55-point pace, in year two ascending even further to 73 PTS per 82 GP. In doing so he was priced out of New York, forcing the team to trade him to St. Louis for Sammy Blais and a 2nd round pick.
 
The Blues signed Buchnevich to a 4-year deal at a $5.8M cap hit, and even that proven to be a bargain when was a point per game player his first year in St. Louis.
 
 
13. Ryan Strome
 

Signed By:	Jeff Gorton		Position:	F
Date:	2020-11-05		Age July 1st:	26
Term:	2 years		Playoff GP:	19
Total Money:	$9M		Playoff PTS:	9
Cap Hit:	$4.5M		Stanley Cups:	0

 

	Adj Cap Hit	GP	PTS	SOG	ATOI
Total	9.1	130	103	289
Per 82 GP	4.6	82	65	182	18.3

"With Ryan Spooner kind of being the odd man out on our team, and the opportunity to get somebody that we like his versatility”

– Jeff Gorton

The Rangers signed hot new prospect Ryan Spooner to an expensive new contract (which you can read about on their worst contracts list) when the kid had a disastrously slow start to the next season, with 2 PTS in 16 GP. Ryan Strome was similarly underachieving in Edmonton, so the teams did a bad contract swap. But while Spooner was playing in the KHL before his contract was supposed to have ended, Strome would thrive in New York when paired with Artemi Panarin.
 
Strome’s 2020 stat line carried an expected value of $7.3M but they got him at $4.5M. I was not present for contract negotiations, but I’m sure there had to be acknowledgement that much of that output was Panarin dependent. Part of the reason this contract is even here is because Strome continued playing with Panarin and outperforming his pay grade. Maybe Artemi deserves all the credit for this being such a bargain?
 
 
14. Derek Stepan
 

Signed By:	Glen Sather		Position:	F
Date:	2013-09-26		Age July 1st:	23
Term:	2 years		Playoff GP:	43
Total Money:	$6.2M		Playoff PTS:	27
Cap Hit:	$3.1M		Stanley Cups:	0

 

	Adj Cap Hit	GP	PTS	SOG	ATOI
Total	7.6	150	112	354
Per 82 GP	3.8	82	61	194	18.1

"I don't think he is a big enough fool to think that he will sit out the year and it will do any good. He is in a gap contract and every one of our players has signed a gap contract.”

– Glen Sather

Derek Stepan became a full-time NHL player immediately after leaving college, bypassing the AHL experience completely, scoring 21 goals and 45 PTS as a rookie. The young center was very nearly a point per game player during the lockout shortened 2013 season, and should have been worth substantially more money than what he eventually settled for. It was not easy to get done, as he went unsigned until late September.
 
Glen Sather made scathing comments in the media, telling the world that Derek would be a fool not to sign the “gap contract” they’d put in front of him, that all his previous teammates had been forced to agreed to take before. Derek signed shortly thereafter.
 
It became yet another bargain bridge for the blueshirts, with Stepan scoring 61 PTS per 82 GP and averaging 18.1 minutes of ice time working both power play and penalty kill. It all worked out in the end, as Derek banked $39M on his next pay day.
 
 
15. J.T Miller
 

Signed By:	Jeff Gorton		Position:	F
Date:	2016-07-13		Age July 1st:	23
Term:	2 years		Playoff GP:	29
Total Money:	$5.5M		Playoff PTS:	11
Cap Hit:	$2.75M		Stanley Cups:	0

 

	Adj Cap Hit	GP	PTS	SOG	ATOI
Total	6.1	164	114	275
Per 82 GP	3.1	82	57	138	16.7

“J.T. Miller is 24, two years away from being an unrestricted free agent. We feel with the addition of these players, with our core, that we've given ourselves a better opportunity to win a Stanley Cup.”

– Steve Yzerman

J.T Miller scored 22 goals and 41 PTS during his first full NHL season in 2016, but still had not accomplished enough to command a more expensive price. He would avoid arbitration by signing ostensibly the same contract that Tomas Hertl had 2 weeks earlier.
 
J.T’s point production and ice time would continue to grow until eventually he was traded to the Tampa Bay Lightning with Ryan McDonagh for a package of prospects and draft picks. Miller finished that season strongly and earned himself a $26.3M pay day courtesy of Steve Yzerman, but did not last much longer in Tampa.