Day: October 9, 2020

New York announced late today that they have also signed defenseman Anthony Bitetto to a two year contract.  The Island Park, NY native joins the Rangers after playing a career high 51 games for the Winnipeg Jets as they struggled to overcome the loss of Dustin Byfuglien and Jacob Trouba.

At 30 years old, Betitto could fill the seventh defenseman role in the same way that Steve Kampfer did for the Rangers a couple of seasons back.  Since being drafted by the Predators in the 6th round of the 2010 draft, Bitetto has played 183 games for the Predators, Wild and Jets.  The signing by the Rangers, brings him back close to his birthplace near the Connecticut border.

While most of today has been about adding a little depth to the organization, the move to add Jack Johnson to the team brings a few more questions to a team that largely seemed to be playing it smart. The recent connection with assistant coach Jacques Martin, who was with Johnson the last two seasons, as well as John Davidson‘s connection to the veteran d-man when he was Columbus, undoubtedly brought him under consideration.

As for the deal itself, the contract is by no means bad, and at 1 year for $1.15M it can be buried or perhaps moved – if as expected it has no restriction on movement and trade.  Maybe they can even get an asset for him if the Rangers are in a dealing move come the deadline.

Queens native Anthony Greco has agreed to a two-year contract with the New York Rangers.  The 27 year old right wing has appeared in one NHL game to date and looks slated for duty in the minor leagues at this stage of his career.

Signed by the Florida Panthers in 2017 as an undrafted free agent following a one-year stint in the AHL, Greco has played almost his entire pro-career in the AHL.  Last season he was traded twice, first to Tampa, and then four days later on to Saan Jose.

Goaltender Keith Kincaid has been added to the team on a two year deal worth an average $875K per year.  Kincaid gives the Rangers a goaltender to expose in the upcoming waiver draft that will see the Seattle Kraken join the league next season.

The 31 year old brings 151 games of NHL experience over seven seasons, with all except last year in Montreal, being played across the Hudson for the New Jersey Devils.  At this stage of his career, he’s likely just an insurance option should either of the Rangers’ primary netminders get injured, but he could also perhaps provide some mentorship to a young team in Hartford that continues to be a work in progress.

Another center has been added to the Rangers depth pool with the free agent signing of Colin Blackwell, who comes over from the Nashville Predators.  The Massachusetts native has appeared in 33 NHL games, making his debut last season as a 25 year old and following that up with 27 games this year, recording 3 goals, 7 assists and a +7 plus/minus rating.

One statistical area he did outperform, was in the face-off circle where he won 37 of 66 battles for a 56.1% record on the season.  Used as a 3rd/4th liner, Blackwell saw almost all his time at even strength, averaging just under 11 minutes per game.

Centerman Kevin Rooney has agreed to a two year, $1.5M contract with the New York Rangers.  The 27 year old Massachusetts native has played his entire career with the Devils, registering 10 goals and 9 assists in 95 games over four seasons.

Undrafted out of Providence College, the 6-2, 190lb center made his NHL debut in his second pro season, going pointless in four appearances during the 2016-17 season.  Last season he set career highs in games (49), assists (5), plus/minus (+8), penalty minutes (20) and shots (59).

It didn’t take long for the Washington Capitals to make good on the rumor and sign former Ranger netminder Henrik Lundqvist to a one year, $1.5M deal.  The agreement brings them a veteran backup to 23 year old Ilya Samsonov who made his NHL debut last season, appearing in 26 games and posting a 22-16-6 record.

The Rangers of course made their decision last week when they opted to buy out the veteran and go with the 24 combination of Igor Shesterkin and Alexandar Georgiev.  Since the end of the season, it was clear they were not going to continue with the three goalie rotation, and they made that official with the buy-out of their franchise’s all time wins leader.

Following early signings, the Rangers have announced the addition of a third center in Jonny Brodzinski.  Like Kevin Rooney and Colin Blackwell, Brodzinski is another 27 year old who has not yet established himself as an NHL regular.

Over four season, the Minnesota native has tallied 6 goals and 6 assists in 57 appearances.  The bulk of his career came with the team that selected him, while last year he saw action in three games wiht the San Jose Sharks.