Earlier this afternoon Larry Brooks New York Post reported that there is a gap between Brandon Dubinsky
and the New York Rangers. The distance in the gap was said to be one that made his looming Thursday arbitrationhearing seem like a likely outcome. The
initial assumptions for most was that the issue was about the money involved
for the two sides, but Jesse Spector of the New
York Daily News reports that the issue is about the length of the deal.
“(Dubinsky is) looking for a longer term,” the source said.
The good part of this is that years should be easier to bridge in terms of the gap than if it were a money issue. However, this news has many very confused as to why there is an issue
at this point. For Dubinsky the ideal
term in terms of maximizing his value is likely 3-4 years where he would get
slightly overpaid based on what he has done so far and leave himself in a
position to get another big contract in his late 20’s. It would make little sense for Dubinsky to
ask for a term in the six-year range because he would be taking less now and
lowering the amount of money and term he could get on his next contract. If the holdup is that Dubinsky wants 4-5
years and the Rangers only want to give him 2-3, then this one is on the
organization and not the player. So, unless
Dubinsky is asking for some sort of career type deal (8+ years), the fact that he wants to stay in the organization longer is a good thing. From the Rangers perspective if the term is 4-5 years it makes to lock him up for as long as they can at a lower number than
where he could play himself to in the next few seasons.
