Confirmed with Link: Rangers buy out Shattenkirk

[SnowblindNYR]

In an off-season that began with lots of historically atypical Rangers moves, it seems to have come full circle with signing Panarin to a ridiculous contract and now buying out Shattenkirk over Staal and Smith.

I really thought the Rangers were turning a corner and would manage their franchise with discipline, but it seems I was wrong.

Shattenkirk was the only player of the three buyout options that might have realistically turned it around and had some value at 50% retained. There is no hope for Staal or Smith and both are far inferior players (albeit on a left-hand side largely devoid of talent).

I still don't see this team as being a playoff team. And they are now going to be saddled with an absolutely massive cap hit for a player that doesn't exist next year (as well as a smaller cap hit for 2 years after that).

They have already destroyed their financial flexibility for the next two years and it now looks as if Kreider will either be overpaid by us or we will live with another year of deadline drama.

If we sign Kreider, we will almost surely lose several of our young prospects when they need to be paid.

An off-season that really started brilliantly and took a long-term approach, has now reversed itself with several really short-sighted moves. These last two specifically are tremendously costly and basicaly should have only been made by teams that see themselves as cup contenders.

Man, only Rangers fans would lose this much sleep over getting a superstar younger than 30. Seriously, this must be the most neurotic fan base in the history of sports.

P.S. Yes I would have much preferred Panarin in a year, but I also would prefer sex with Jennifer Lawrence. Neither thing was happening.

 

[bbny]

Correct. Contract limits:

Team SPC limit: 50
Retained salary transactions: 3 (this does not include a transaction where another team retained salary for you)
2nd Buyout Window: 3 per CBA (so every 7-10 years)

Hmm. Possible the Rangers are re-evauating the trade market over the next day or two, with the potential of buying out Smith too? I can't say I am a fan of something like that, but there's probably a case to be made for it. Mostly around how much they believe in DeAngelo and if they think the immediate cap space would save them money in the long term with signing him to a long term deal now.

 

[GeorgeKaplan]

We can debate theories as to whether Shattenkirk can turn it around, because that's speculation and there's no facts to compel us to completely dismiss the concept.

But there is one thing I can say with confidence, Shattenkirk was not drawing interest around the league with any amount of retention. If he did, a trade would've been made.

So the whole "Shattenkirk has trade value to a team" line needs to be cut from this script. Typing it a thousand times doesn't make it any more factual. The Rangers tried. There were no takers.

Probably for the same reason the Namestnikov’s/Strome’s of the world don’t get traded in the offseason: in a cap world where top players salaries are increasing teams would rather give kids a shot or sign a close to league minimum UFA to fill out their rosters

 

[Edge]

I think this is the way Gorton and fellow brainiacs are thinking and taking the "lets wait and see" approach.

Pros......he loves this newly reformed team
...............gets on the scoreboard nearly every game
................loves NY and couldnt imagine playing elsewhere

Cons......the chance of him getting injured

He just might give us a hometown deal. Question is, will Gorton give it to him and bypass a 1st + in 2020?

Of course, there's also the possibility that he indeed finds his niche on this offense and that ends up pricing him out of the Rangers plans. In which case, the trade ends up happening anyway.

 

[Tawnos]

OK... so after being involved in all the discussions non-stop for the last two day-time part of the day, I was too busy to comment much last night after this was confirmed. Major preparations for a 10-day vacation, most of which will be camping in the Adirondacks.

This pretty obviously means that the returns for Kreider, Namestnikov and Buchnevich did not reach the level Gorton wanted. And I think that makes sense. It's all about supply and demand. At the deadline, there was so much supply of rental wingers that Zuccarello's return was lighter than we were hoping. Most of those rental wingers went to market. While they're all signed now, the teams that were in the market for a winger no longer are looking for one, so while supply went down, so did demand.

Case in point: according to many, including those with inside info, one of the biggest suitors for Kreider had been Colorado. But Colorado signed Donskoi. Yes, they're still going to have cap space for Kreider, but the urgency of their need for a winger is diminished. And then you have a place like Arizona, which was another Kreider suitor, but who instead were able to bring in Kessel while only adding $1.9m to their cap. This wasn't an option in a deal with the Rangers, because the Rangers were never in a position to be offering Kreider with retention. This off-season's market for winger trades has been really bad. First too much supply, then too little demand.

Meanwhile, next deadline looks like it might be better for us. It's pretty likely that Kreider is going to be the only top-6 winger available as a rental. There are other guys who are pending UFAs, but most are likely on playoff teams or teams in the hunt. Guys like Hoffman or Galchenyuk. We will see what happens with the Devils and Hall.

All of that is to say that this buyout was the only move the Rangers could make without making a bad trade. Personally, I would have bought out Smith and traded Namestnikov (as always, Staal was never a buyout option), but it makes a lot of sense why they did this. You get your cap where you need it this year and next year's calculations are essentially exactly what it would have been if they didn't buy Shattenkirk out (buyout hit + replacement player is roughly equal to original cap hit).

I think there is a little disappointment around here in that this was the most boring route for them to go, but that will pass.

 

[Edge]

Probably for the same reason the Namestnikov’s/Strome’s of the world don’t get traded in the offseason: in a cap world where top players salaries are increasing teams would rather give kids a shot or sign a close to league minimum UFA to fill out their rosters

From what I've heard, the trade market isn't great right now.

There's always a demand for higher-end talent, and young talent. It's those lower middle of the road talents, the Applebee's of the NHL, that are stuck in neutral.

 

[TheTakedown]

Shatty also had the highest % of offensive zone starts (56.6) of any regular on the Rangers last year and got 28 points. Most all of our players were under 50. Contrast that with DeAngelo who had a 45.4 for offensive zone starts and outpointed Kevin with 30 in 12 less games and outpointed Kevin on the power play too. Staal is interesting too in that stat as he had the most defensive zone starts for the Rangers--61.4. Trouba by the way had 51.2 and put up 50 points but on a Winnipeg team that put him pretty close to the bottom in that stat on his team.

Zone starts are not a good stat to be quoting

 

[Crease]

Staal + Smith

[TABLE="class: brtb_item_table"][TBODY][TR][TD]Season[/TD][TD]AAV[/TD][TD]Cap Penalty[/TD][TD]Net Savings[/TD][/TR]
[TR][TD]2019-20[/TD][TD]$10,050,000[/TD][TD]$3,870,833[/TD][TD]$6,179,167[/TD][/TR]
[TR][TD]2020-21[/TD][TD]$10,050,000[/TD][TD]$6,845,833[/TD][TD]$3,204,167[/TD][/TR]
[TR][TD]2021-22[/TD][TD]$0[/TD][TD]$2,345,833[/TD][TD]-$2,345,833[/TD][/TR]
[TR][TD]2022-23[/TD][TD]$0[/TD][TD]$2,345,833[/TD][TD]-$2,345,833[/TD][/TR][/TBODY][/TABLE]
Shattenkirk

[TABLE="class: brtb_item_table"][TBODY][TR][TD]Season[/TD][TD]AAV[/TD][TD]Cap Penalty[/TD][TD]Net Savings[/TD][/TR]
[TR][TD]2019-20[/TD][TD]$6,650,000[/TD][TD]$1,483,333[/TD][TD]$5,166,667[/TD][/TR]
[TR][TD]2020-21[/TD][TD]$6,650,000[/TD][TD]$6,083,333[/TD][TD]$566,667[/TD][/TR]
[TR][TD]2021-22[/TD][TD]$0[/TD][TD]$1,433,333[/TD][TD]-$1,433,333[/TD][/TR]
[TR][TD]2022-23[/TD][TD]$0[/TD][TD]$1,433,333[/TD][TD]-$1,433,333[/TD][/TR][/TBODY][/TABLE]
Buying out Staal or Smith alone doesn't get you the 2019-20 savings that buying out Shattenkirk does. Buying out both Staal and Smith gives you the most 2019-20 savings, but one reason the Rangers may have chosen against this is Dolan's out of pocket expense. Buying out Shattenkirk cost Dolan $5,733,333 in real dollars. Buying out Staal and Smith would have cost Dolan $9,383,333. Buying out Shattenkirk also hurts less in years three and four.

Source: CapFriendly

 

[NYR Viper]

News flash: we were never going to compete the next two years anyway.

Once we make it to 21-22 our cap issues vanish.

See this is where I get confused. If this was the case, why sign Panarin? He'll be 29-30 in 2 years so they miss out on a couple of prime years

 

[GeorgeKaplan]

From what I've heard, the trade market isn't great right now.

There's always a demand for higher-end talent, and young talent. It's those lower middle of the road talents, the Applebee's of the NHL, that are stuck in neutral.

The trade market seems to just be teams trying to free up/move around money at the moment, and it generally feels that way to me every summer. I’m generally not too negatively critical of the front office, but this whole saga really feels like a big miscalculation on their part

 

[Hi ImHFNYR]

So much wrong with this post. But yeah, he was getting older each day, I’ll give you that

. Theres nothing wrong with it outside of maybe a missed comma. Everything I said was true

 

[Tawnos]

See this is where I get confused. If this was the case, why sign Panarin? He'll be 29-30 in 2 years so they miss out on a couple of prime years

I think the timeline they probably have in their head is 20-21, rather than 21-22.

 

[Edge]

The trade market seems to just be teams trying to free up/move around money at the moment, and it generally feels that way to me every summer. I’m generally not too negatively critical of the front office, but this whole saga really feels like a big miscalculation on their part

Not going to lie, none of this is terribly surprising. It's one of the main reasons I wasn't crazy about going down the Panarin route. I feel like it's us trying to force the issue a bit.

 

[EpicDing]

See this is where I get confused. If this was the case, why sign Panarin? He'll be 29-30 in 2 years so they miss out on a couple of prime years

Yeah I wasn't exactly thrilled about going after Panarin either, they're probably thinking he'll still be really good/elite into his 30s

 

[EpicDing]

If this ‘news flash’ were true, or at least was the view of the front office, I am not sure u throw a bag of cash @ max term for Panarin and maybe don’t send off 20th pick in a deep draft for Trouba KNOWING u would have to sign him to max term and 8M.

No matter what lens u view this buyout through... it IS a black eye for Gorton & co. There’s no way around that.

I don't agree in the slightest. They bought a player out who got injured and wasn't what they signed him for. Shit happens

 

[GeorgeKaplan]

Not going to lie, none of this is terribly surprising. It's one of the main reasons I wasn't crazy about going down the Panarin route. I feel like it's us trying to force the issue a bit.

That’s how I feel too. I stopped myself from posting for a little while after the Panarin signing because I didn’t want to rain on anyone’s parade, but as happy as I was with the offseason before free agency, I’ve been just as disappointed with the team since July 1

 

[Deleted member 23124]

See this is where I get confused. If this was the case, why sign Panarin? He'll be 29-30 in 2 years so they miss out on a couple of prime years

That's why I felt they were the right moves at the wrong time....either they're rebuilding or back to "going for it" mode.

 

[NYR Viper]

I think the timeline they probably have in their head is 20-21, rather than 21-22.

Bu tif that were the case, they still have a HUGE dead cap hit next year with Shattenkirk. His dead cap + Girardi is a legit top-line player in UFA @ $7m

 

[SnowblindNYR]

The problem is EVERYONE including Gordon wishes Panarin became available in a year. But that was never an option. An opportunity like that doesn't present itself every year. It's hard to just ignore it.

 

[Jaromir Jagr]

News flash: we were never going to compete the next two years anyway.

Once we make it to 21-22 our cap issues vanish.

Which is like reason number 1 why we shouldn't be adding unnecessary cap hits beyond this and next year....and only furthers the point that we shouldn't have signed Panarin.

 

[will1066]

Panarin was definitely the X factor to all of this. People who were critical of Gorton for not planning ahead need to realize that Panarin, basically, was dropped on our laps. And hence blew up the cap. The team offered less money, and the guy still wanted to come here. Whether Gorton played poker with a low offer or not, the opportunity presented itself after the other teams couldn't get him.

 

[Tawnos]

Bu tif that were the case, they still have a HUGE dead cap hit next year with Shattenkirk. His dead cap + Girardi is a legit top-line player in UFA @ $7m

The cap hit next year for Shattenkirk is essentially the same with or without a buyout. They're either paying Shattenkirk $6.65m to be on the team or their paying $7m for a buyout plus a guy on an ELC. It doesn't change anything at all about next year's cap situation.

At this moment, the Rangers should have about $7m in space for next season with no spots to fill on D, and about 4 spots to fill at forward. Probably more like $9m with the final cap calculation. If you spend $3m total on 3 of those spots, that still leaves you with $6m to play with if you need it.

 

[Jaromir Jagr]

Man, only Rangers fans would lose this much sleep over getting a superstar younger than 30. Seriously, this must be the most neurotic fan base in the history of sports.

P.S. Yes I would have much preferred Panarin in a year, but I also would prefer sex with Jennifer Lawrence. Neither thing was happening.

You act like getting someone younger than 30 is so amazing. You also act like signing a star player makes sense no matter the current situation of the team.

Panarin is also not 23. He's 28. And we signed him for 7 years.

I also don't understand why you're acting like I'm some crazy neurotic. There's a shitload of historical precedent that signing players in their late 20's to massive long-term deals doesn't make sense.

It's just so frustrating that you can't respond in a reasonable way and that you make me out to be some ridiculously unreasonable person. I'd argue that there are significantly more risks in signing Panarin than potential rewards, especially at where this team is currently.

 

[will1066]

The problem is EVERYONE including Gordon wishes Panarin became available in a year. But that was never an option. An opportunity like that doesn't present itself every year. It's hard to just ignore it.

I used these same words, basically, in my post above.

 

[cwede]

i am just very surprised no contender made a fair trade offer for Shatty at 50%
while maybe they anticipated he'd be free soon, that doesn't assure they'd be ones to sign him

the season will start, and mid-season and TDL will come,
and 'contending' teams will be looking for RHS D or PMD and likely paying more for worse ...

i don't have a problem with adding Bread and Trouba now, while targeting Cup contention beginning in '21-22, when the roster/Cap realignment can complete

they will be fully transitioned and comfortable to NYR and Quinn, the blue chip kids will have become NHL acclimated

Quinn will be coaching to win all along, maybe they contend for a playoff spot sooner than expected