As the NHL’s offseason rolls on, contract negotiations between the New York Rangers and 2020 first-overall pick Alexis Lafreniere continue. General manager (GM) Chris Drury is seemingly in no rush to make the signing official, and without the threat of an offer sheet looming due to the “unwritten rules of NHL GMs,” Drury is right not to be worried.
Entering the offseason, Drury and the Rangers’ priorities gravitated toward re-signing K’Andre Miller and bringing in cost-controlled free agents to fill the roster voids. They were successful, signing players like Blake Wheeler, Jonathan Quick, Nick Bonino, Tyler Pitlick, and Erik Gustafsson, all of which signed for at or below $1 million.
As the summer treks on, the last remaining piece of the puzzle is Lafreniere, who awaits his next contract. Per Forever Blueshirts, in the La Presse of Montreal, Lafreniere was quoted about a new deal saying, “It’s coming. My agent and the Rangers are in discussions; I hope it will be settled in the next few weeks.”
That deal is likely to be a bridge deal similar to what his teammate Kaapo Kakko signed after his entry-level contract—two years at $2.1 million average annual value (AAV)—yet, there seems to be something holding up the agreement between the two sides.
Could Drury be trying to get Lafreniere at a bargain? Or is Lafreniere trying to get more than the Rangers’ current offer? Both sides could wait to see who bats an eye first, but it’s the offseason, so let’s introduce a third possible scenario into the mix.
Rangers Trying to Make Room for Lafreniere and Motte
According to CapFriendly, the Rangers have $2,278,417 in cap space. That total involves the Rangers carrying 12 forwards and eight defensemen. Carrying eight defensemen is unrealistic, so if Connor Mackey is the odd man out and sent down, that would bring the Rangers’ total to $3,053,417 in cap space.
Tyler Motte remains unsigned, and I refuse to believe that to be a coincidence. The Rangers have traded for Motte each of the past two deadlines. Blueshirts’ brass believes his game fits a role player’s needs on a championship-caliber team.
If Drury can get Motte to agree to a one-year, $1 million contract, the holdup between Lafreniere and the Rangers could be as simple as getting the Quebec native to sign a two-year contract worth $2 million AAV. Should the cards fold that way, the Rangers can send Alex Belzille down to Hartford, freeing up his $775,000 in cap space to save for the trade deadline.
This may be all hypothetical, but there is a real chance this could be what is going on behind the scenes. Motte is a solid fourth-line player who would have received offers over the past six weeks of free agency. If he genuinely wants to remain a Ranger, and the Rangers truly like him, Drury could be playing cap gymnastics in his contract negotiations and trying to make room for both players.
Related: Cap-Strapped Rangers Ready to Depend Heavily on Spare Parts
There are other ways to make it work besides the outlined scenario here. Drury could trade a player on the roster bubble and free up more cap space to make signing Motte and Lafreniere work. Every NHL team can go 10 percent over the salary cap in the offseason, so the numbers don’t have to add up perfectly now.
Retaining Motte seemed bleak, but if Drury can find a way to pull off keeping Motte while signing Lafreniere to a more team-friendly deal, that is a significant win for the Rangers.
Lafreniere’s Next Deal is a Prove-It Contract
The news that Lafreniere and the Rangers are closing in on an extension is comforting. Say what you want about the 21-year-old meeting expectations, but getting a cost-controlled player who can move up and down the top nine is essential. Not to mention, the Rangers have a new head coach in Peter Laviolette, who may be able to utilize Lafreniere in a way that allows him to take a step next season.
He had 16 goals and 23 assists during the 2022-23 campaign. Just four of those points came on the power play, and three of those four were goals. If given more power-play time, Lafreniere’s numbers would increase. Couple that with a more mature game and new systems, and we could see a different Lafreniere this year.
If Drury can sign him to a two-year, $2 million prove-it deal, getting a player at that price tag who could potentially score 50 points is a great value. Lafreniere is circled as one of those players who could produce at a clip that outperforms his contract in a league that requires production from players on the lower side of the salary cap.
On the flip side, Lafreniere knows he has to be better. A new coach and new deal could be the chance he needs to turn the page and start the next chapter of his career, which would be a welcome sight for Drury and the Rangers. If Lafreniere can morph into the player we thought he would become when he was the first-overall selection, accepting a bridge deal is a worthwhile gamble.
It’s a low-risk/high-reward situation for the cap-strapped Rangers and a bet on himself by Lafreniere. Again, it’s not a matter of if the two sides agree to a deal but when it happens and how much the final number is. Lafreniere taking an amount below Kakko could be the self-awareness that endears himself to Rangers fans and allows them to better the team in the long run.
The negotiations are winding down, and we will soon see if Lafreniere’s new deal opens the door for Motte to return next season.
