Arbitration Hearing Dates Set For Dubinsky, Boyle, Callahan

Each of the three remaining restricted free agents for the New York Rangers has the potential to go to an arbitration hearing to settle their contract issues with the team.  Today the NHLPA announced when those hearings would be held, if they are necessary.  

• Brandon Dubinsky: July 21
• Brian Boyle: July 25
• Ryan Callahan: July 28

As I said these dates are only if necessary because deals can be worked out before these ever come to be, as was the case with Michael Sauer this morning.  The order of the dates is intriguing because most would expect for Callahan to have been the next contract done, and he still could be, but with Dubinsky having the first hearing there could be more focus on getting that deal hammered out before a hearing ever happens.

The best part about these dates is that it means the contracts for all three should be decided before August.

Rangers Re-Sign Artem Anisimov

Jim McIsaac/Getty Images

Update: Andrew Gross is now reporting that the deal will pay Anisimov $1.875 per season for the two years. Earlier in the summer I had surmised that Anisimov would get $1.8 million so I was in the area, but credit to Dave Shapiro for going with $1.85 million and being even closer.

Andrew Gross is reporting that the New York Rangers have agreed to a two-year deal with center Artem Anisimov.  The deal for Anisimov would mark the second restricted free agent to sign today with MichaelSauer also getting a two-year deal earlier.  The Anisimov deal getting done is not that surprising considering Andy Strickland reported Saturday that Anisimov would re-sign in relatively short order after the Richards deal was done.

Anisimov, 23, showed improvements in his second season scoring 18 goals and adding 26 assists while playing all 82 games.  There is still room for growth in Anisimov's game as he needs to improve his strength and be more aggressive to reach his potential as a possible 60 point player in the NHL.

Rangers Sign Sauer To Two-Year Deal

According to Larry Brooks of the New York Post the New York Rangers have agreed to a two-year, $2.5 million contract with Michael Sauer.  The $1.25 million per on Sauer is right in line with what was expected for the 23-year-old defender.  Sauer went from an afterthought coming into training camp last season to a key part of the Rangers top four on defense.  In 76 games he had three goals and 12 assists, but Sauer is not in New York for his offense. He is here to provide his defensive awareness, position and attention to detail.  He hits, clears the crease and will fight to defend his teammates which is something the Rangers had been lacking in the defense corps recently.

Signing Sauer takes one of the Rangers restricted free agents and arbitration cases off the list this summer.  Glen Sather's very good summer continues.

Cartoon: Brad Richards, Chris Drury, Scott Gomez, and Bobby Holik Walk Into A Bar

Gary Finkler of 7th Inning Sketch emailed me this graphic depiction of what it would look like if all the Rangers recent high priced free agent centers got together for a few drinks and talked about what it is like to play in New York.

Be sue to give Gary's site a check for more sports related cartoons

Richards Using Pressure Of New York As Motivation To Play Harder For Rangers

New York Rangers center Brad Richards sat down with Steve Serby of the New York Post for in-depth interview that talked about issues both and off the ice.  The overall interview is excellent and gives a real feel for Richards as a person beyond just the dollar figures and hockey skill that has been the focus since he signed with the Rangers.  Aside from his age where the length of contract and money has been talked about, the most discussed issue with Richards has been whether he could perform in the pressure of New York.

Q: The pressure being in the New York market.

A: It’s gonna be a different animal, I’m not gonna lie to you. It’s not the same as playing in Tampa or Dallas. But I’ve been through playoff runs. If you’re getting into a Game 7, it’s as much pressure as you can handle no matter where you’re playing, ’cause we all have pride and we want to win. I think the experience of playing on home soil for Team Canada, playing for the Olympics, that’s a lot of pressure that people don’t realize if you’re a Canadian playing on those teams. There’s no option, you have to win. . . . I think that’s something that will make me better, it will drive me, it’ll push me more. Can’t have those nights where you don’t feel like playing hard, you have to play hard in front of these fans, they’ll let you know.

There is nothing more you can ask of a player than to play hard.  Player’s will have off nights and some will even have off years, but if they are giving legitimate effort the complaints about them will be much different than those who just appear to be going through the motions. The fans of this organization have always gravitated to those who break their backs to help the team win, even above those who were more skilled.  Obviously they will expect numbers and wins from Richards in his tenure as well, but giving the right effort will take him a long way to winning over the Garden faithful.

The fact that Richards sees the pressure of New York and the knowledge of Rangers’ fans as a motivational force sets the stage for him to be just fine here and will only make this team better.  When your best players are also your hardest workers it becomes contagious throughout the lineup and with the number of young players the Rangers have in the fold, those are the kinds of lessons you want filtering through your roster and organization.

For many he will be judged on whether he brings a title back to Broadway, and that is part of the pressure that comes with signing for big dollars in New York, but Richards accepts that challenge and is hungry for it.  These are the types of things, while just words at this point, make you believe that Richards can succeed where other big names have failed in spotlight of New York. 

The more you hear and read about Richards the more you like the man that will be manning the middle for the Rangers for many years to come.  This city is lucky to have #19 as a Blueshirt.

Rangers Ranked As 2nd Most Improved Team During Free Agency

In reviewing the early returns of free agency, Dan Rosen at NHL.com ranked the New York Rangers #2 in term of teams that made themselves better with their moves over the past week.  The Rangers only trail the Washington Capitals who got the bargain of the summer in getting goalie Tomas Vokoun for $1.5 million next year.

Rosen obviously highlighted the acquisition of Brad Richards as the key move for the Rangers as it gives them the top line center they needed, but he also felt the move for Mike Rupp was critical for the Rangers.

Richards brings credibility to the position that the Rangers needed it most. Yes, they had to give out a hefty contract and they will be paying some huge bucks, especially in the first six years when Richards is reportedly in line to make $57 million of the $60 million contract, but he's a 31-year-old former Stanley Cup and Conn Smythe winner who already knows the coach and his system.

Don't overlook Mike Rupp jumping on board for three years at a total of $4.5 million. Rupp is a physical player who fights and can score the odd goal. He's won the Stanley Cup and he's one of the most likable guys in the dressing room.

Over the past few years the Rangers have incorporated more and more young talent from the system to fill holes and become core members of the future of the team.  Now that they feel they are close to contending the Rangers did what you are supposed to do which is surround those players with guys who have been through the battles before and know what it takes to get to the finish line.  Richards brings skill and Rupp brings toughness to the Rangers, but both bring experience in playoff conditions and Stanley Cup championships on their resume.  To go beyond those things both are viewed as good in the locker room which should only build on the chemistry the Rangers’ had as a unit last season.

Worry about the money and the length of the deals later and believe Rosen now when he says the Rangers were one of the most improved teams in the opening days of free agency.

Which Rangers RFA Would Team Most Likely Walk Away From Arbitration Award?

When Ryan Callahan, Brandon Dubinsky, Brian Boyle and Michael Sauer all elected to file for arbitration yesterday they set the stage for an interesting few weeks for GM Glen Sather, but they also made his job easier.  There is no worry about any of the four key Rangers being offer sheeted by an opposing club.  There is no uncertainty about the timetable of having a contract and/or dollar amount for next season decided.  There is also now the option for Sather to use the secondary buyout period if he wants to reconsider his options on players like Wojtek Wolski and/or Sean Avery who were amongst those potentially rumored to be bought out before the June window.

Yesterday there was an examination of how front-loading the longer-term contracts for Callahan and Dubinsky could benefit both sides.  In the case of Michael Sauer and Brian Boyle shorter term contracts would be more expected given that both have only had one season in the NHL at the level they performed last year.   Both going into camp last season on the outside of roster projections and turning into crucial contributors sets them up for large raises from their modest prior salaries.  Sauer made $500K and Boyle $525K respectively during the 2010-11 season.  While it is possible that the Rangers could walk on Callahan or Dubinsky if the award were to be obscene it is highly improbable.  So, of the Sauer and Boyle, which is more likely to receive the big reward and have the Rangers walk away?

Writing On The Wall For Christensen Departure From Rangers?

During his WFAN interview this morning Brad Richards revealed that he would be wearing #19 again after switching to #91 in Dallas.  Ruslan Fedotenko gave up the number to Richards whom he played with in Tampa Bay.  Later Brian Compton of NHL.com tweeted that Fedotenko will instead wear #26 this season, which is the same number he wore when he was in Tampa.  The fact that Fedotenko was taking #26, which belonged to Erik Christensen last season has led to many thinking it means that Christensen is a lock to be gone before the regular season.  Andrew Gross reported that Christensen granted Fedotenko permission to take the number because he doesn’t care what number he wears. 

Update: The New York Rangers official twitter reports that Christensen will wear #40 and Rupp #71

So is the writing finally on the wall for a Christensen departure this summer?

With Richards in the fold and the rest of the roster at best Christensen should be a spare forward who is kept around as a healthy scratch in case of an injury.  He will no longer have the crutch of hope that his initial chemistry with Marian Gaborik can be rekindled because Richards is taking that spot permanently. 

Kevin Baumer at Blueshirt Bulletin examined how Richards own shootout quality could eliminate the need for Christensen as a specialist there as well, which was his only other use to the team.  Baumer points out that Richards has converted 25 of his 59 (42%) career shootout attempts rendering the need to carry Christensen for the skills competition moot. 

It is unlikely the Rangers will just waive Christensen without attempting to deal him first.  If the Rangers could do a similar deal with him this summer as they did with Voros last summer to get a solid defender to fill the 6/7 role in the defense corps then they would do well.  Someone is likely to take a chance on Christensen thinking they can get him to consistently use his skill and take advantage of his shootout skills in the process. 

The Rangers were obviously one of the best teams in the NHL in shootouts last season, but having a player like Richards who is good in shootouts means that they can stop carrying guys just for their shootout expertise and removes the last vestiges of Christensen’s usefulness to New York.

Listen: Richards Discusses Many Topics, Reveals Switching Back to #19 During WFAN Interview

During an interview with Sid Rosenberg of WFAN, Brad Richards of the New York Rangers touched on a variety of topics.  Here is a bullet point rundown of what was talked about.

• Richards is a Yankees fans as growing up in Prince Edward Island it was Boston or Toronto for most and he hated both.
• Richards cited his relationship and comfort with Tortorella and the system as a key to signing with New York
• Rangers young talent was also a key consideration for Richards who reiterated his comparison to what went on in Tampa before the championship.
• Hopes that Gaborik will benefit from playing with him and wants to personally dominate out there as he has in the past with other wingers.
• Passes on chance to discuss Rangers free agency failings in Drury and Gomez.  Says he was focused on his own game and not what was happening with them.
• Rosenberg gave Richards an open net asking him if he automatically hates the Islanders now that he is a Ranger and Richards slammed the puck in the back of the net.
• Will wear #19 again

Audio of the interview:

Front-loading Contracts For Callahan, Dubinsky Would Aid Them and Rangers

When Ryan Callahan, Brandon Dubinsky, Brian Boyle and Michael Sauer all elected to file for arbitration yesterday they set the stage for an interesting few weeks for GM Glen Sather, but they also made his job easier.  There is no worry about any of the four key Rangers being offer sheeted by an opposing club.  There is no uncertainty about the timetable of having a contract and/or dollar amount for next season decided.  There is also now the option for Sather to use the secondary buyout period if he wants to reconsider his options on players like Wojtek Wolski and/or Sean Avery who were amongst those potentially rumored to be bought out before the June window.

Having been done a favor by the players filing for arbitration it is now up to GM Glen Sather to take advantage of it and get deals done with these players before the hearing ever happen starting later this month.  With Dubinsky and Callahan the deal should be of the longer term variety 4-5 years to lock in two integral pieces of the core, while on Sauer and Boyle the deals are likely to be shorter term 1-2 seasons to have both prove that last season was not a fluke.

In negotiating the longer deals with Dubinsky and Callahan, Sather could employ a similar tact as he did with the Brad Richards negotiation in giving a large piece of the money in the first few seasons to entice the players to potentially take a lower cap hit over the course of the deal. While the two won’t have the extra years at the end of the deal to drastically lower the cap hit, what can happen is the players get their money guaranteed before the new CBA and protect themselves against rollbacks.  Basically what you would do with their contracts is invert the Staal deal.

Take Callahan as an example: 

2011-12: $5.25

2012-13: $5.25

2013-14: $3

2014-15: $2.5

2015-16: $2

While Callahan is not worth the $5.25 million he would be getting in the first two years of the deal it would allow the Rangers to get him for a lower cap hit than if they did an escalating deal where he worries about potential rollbacks in salary following the new deal.  The move also protects the Rangers if the new CBA counts salaries as they are against the cap as Callahan’s later years would be at a decreased rate.  There are positive trade-offs for both sides in this kind of arrangement.  Overall the deal would come out to a five-year, $18.25 million contract with an AAV of $3.65.

If public perception is correct, then this kind of tact might be even more effective for Dubinsky who gets his money up front and then worries about his next deal later on.  Just something to consider, but either way Glen Sather will be busy over the next few weeks to not squander the gift some of his key players gave him in taking the arbitration route.