Jesper Fast

With Stepan yet to sign, Rangers face cap crunch

Published Jul. 6, 2015 11:39 a.m. ET

foxsports

The New York Rangers might be in some trouble when it comes to securing deals for its four restricted free agents, and they can look to an in-state rival if they want someone to blame for their troubles.

According to CBS New York, the Rangers have approximately $10 million left in cap space with contracts for Derek Stepan, J.T. Miller, Jesper Fast and Emerson Etem still on the to-do list. One of the more difficult negotiations could involve Stepan, who filed for arbitration ahead of Sunday's 5 p.m. arbitration deadline.

As a 25-year-old alternate captain for the Rangers, Stepan is an important piece in the club's future plans, but after comparable center Ryan O'Reilly signed a seven-year, $52.5 million deal with the Buffalo Sabres, CBS New York said Stepan's price could be on the rise.

"Stepan is an upward-trending star who is just breaking into his prime years," CBS New York's Sean Hartnett wrote in a recent column. "He has averaged 0.78 points per game over the past three seasons and has scored his share of memorable playoff goals. The question is: How far do the Rangers go to satisfy Stepan? He is definitely worth between $6 and $6.5 million million per year. Anything above $6.5 million is an overpayment. ... A demand of a long-term deal above $7 million AAV could force the Rangers to do the unthinkable — trade Stepan away."

Stepan ranked third on the team in scoring in the 2014-15 season with 55 points (16 goals, 39 assists) in 68 games.

(h/t CBS New York)

Photo credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

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