New York Rangers top three potential compliance buyout options

Due to decreased revenues in 2019-20, each NHL team may get a free compliance contract buyout. Here are the New York Rangers top three candidates.

COVID-19 has brought chaos into the NHL’s collective profits for the 2019-20 season. Before this pandemic emerged, it was estimated that the league’s salary cap could go up for the 2020-21 season. Ballpark figures had it somewhere between $84M and $88M. That was good news for the New York Rangers, who were going to be against the cap ceiling after giving big contracts to Artemi Panarin and Chris Kreider in the last year.

However, with a massive profit loss looming over the league, it is becoming more likely that the salary cap will remain closer to the current $81.5M. With this huge gap in the cap projections, there will be plenty of teams struggling to fit in all their contracts. The NHL in conjunction with the Players Association may throw teams a lifeline this off-season and allow for one or two compliance buyouts per organization that will not count against the cap.

The New York Rangers have some decisions to make this summer (or whenever this off-season will be) with their younger players. Seven need new contracts. Among them are restricted free agents Ryan Strome, Tony DeAngelo, Alexandar Georgiev, Brendan Lemieux, and unrestricted free agent Jesper Fast.

According to CapFriendly, Rangers General Manager Jeff Gorton will have approximately $15.5M available from expiring contracts to get these deals done. It should be close to enough money to go around, assuming no one gets overpaid (looking at you, Mr. Strome). DeAngelo is the only “Must Sign” player on this list. But outside of some slick negotiating by Gorton, the Rangers can save themselves a few bucks for future use with this potential buyout option.