K’Andre Miller Dealt to Hurricanes
In what ended up being a busy day for Chris Drury, the Rangers GM has dealt 25 year old defenseman K’Andre Miller to the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for a 1st round pick, a 2nd round pick and 22 year old defenseman Scott Morrow.
The move comes following reports that the Rangers had been interested in trading the young RFA blueliner, rather than sign him to a long term contract following a lapse in play over the last two seasons.
Cuylle Extended
New York dealt with one of their main RFAs today, signing Will Cuylle to a 2 year extension that will average $3.9M per year. The extension comes after the team added free agent defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov earlier in the day, along with veteran forward Justin Dowling to a two year deal.
Cuylle had just completed his Entry Level Contract, and was perhaps at risk of an offer sheet if a deal hadn’t been worked out. With Matthew Knies getting a 7 year deal worth $7.75M annually up in Toronto, there was some thought that Cuylle’s number might also get a lesser, though still substantial offer.
Rangers Add Top UFA Defenseman
Rangers General Manager Chris Drury got his target defenseman on the first day of NHL free agency, signing former LA King blueliner Vladislav Gavrikov to a seven year $49M contract. The deal includes a full No Move Clause for the first five seasons, and enough signing bonus money to make it almost buy-out proof through that same term.
The 6-3 220lb Russian provides some added size to the blueline, and the Rangers will be hoping he can slot in with Adam Fox, and provide a bit more defensive resiliency to their top unit. He played a career high 23:05 per game last season, and finished his three year stint as part of one of the better defensive units in the league.