Bye Bye Nikolai
According to Larry Brooks in today’s New York Post, the Rangers could walk away from any arbitration award that Zherdev might get. The Rangers qualified Zherdev at $3.25M to retain his rights, but the Ukrainian born winger filed for salary arbitration. If the arbiter should award more than the qualifying offer, the team may elect to decline it, making Zherdev a UFA.
It would be a disappointing end to his Rangers’ career if it comes to that, but his performances under John Tortorella particularly, are such that his value to the team is less definitive at this point. Add in the addition of right wing Marian Gaborik and left wing Christopher Higgins, and there’s less reason to keep him around. Freeing up $3.25M in Cap space would also give the team some options in terms of acquiring a center such as Michal Rozsival or Patrick Marleau.