Tarrytown NY: Rangers prospects show skills at development camp
NY Rangers prospects skate during a development camp at the MSG Training Center in Tarrytown July 1, 2025.
After completing the bulk of his offseason business on July 1, New York Rangers team president Chris Drury can spend the rest of the summer tying up loose ends and planning for the future.
That prep work not only includes keeping an eye on the trade market and anticipating who might be available at next year’s deadline, but also gathering information on potential options for next offseason and beyond.
Among the most feasible outcomes would be offering a contract extension to star winger Artemi Panarin, who’s entering the seventh and final year of an $81.5 million deal that should go down as the greatest free-agent signing in the franchise’s 100-year history.
Panarin has led the Rangers in scoring all six seasons so far, accumulating 550 points (186 goals and 364 assists) across 430 games for an impressive average of 1.28 per contest. He’s finished top five in Hart Trophy voting for the NHL’s MVP twice, including the 2023-24 campaign when he registered a career-high 120 points (49 goals and 71 assists) to come within three of tying the team’s single-season record.
He’s simply a magician with the puck − the likes of which have rarely made Madison Square Garden their home. The combination of elite skill and daring playmaking has made him the undisputed engine of the Blueshirts’ previously boring offense. Frankly, it’s hard to figure how they’d score consistently without him.
That’s why keeping Panarin around beyond the life of his current contract has obvious appeal. But there are several factors in play that lead us to believe the Rangers shouldn’t rush into an extension, which Panarin was eligible to sign as of July 1.
Drury declined comment when asked if any discussions have taken place, but it’s no secret he has a lot to consider before making any further commitment.
What are the alternatives in 2026?
Above all, Drury must wait for clarity on which players will be available next year before making a decision on Panarin.
If he believes a younger, more desirable piece could be had, the Rangers will be in their best position to strike in years, dating back to the summer of 2019 when they snatched Panarin as a prized UFA.
With his contract coming off the books and a salary cap ceiling that’s projected to rise to $104 million for the 2026-27 season, New York is looking at a loose estimate between $28.5 million and $30 million in available spending power. That will allow Drury to pounce if any of the top free agents from what could be a stacked 2026 class make it to market.
There are three potential headliners, each of whom are five years younger than Panarin. (He’ll turn 34 on Oct. 30 and be closing in on 35 when his next contract kicks in.) It starts with best-player-in-the-world Connor McDavid, with Jack Eichel and Kirill Kaprizov right behind him. If any consider relocating, expect the Rangers to be heavily involved.
But if we’re placing odds a little less than a year out, the chances seem fairly slim. A few league sources believe McDavid may sign a short-term deal to keep the Oilers on their toes, but most would be shocked to see him leave Edmonton. And ESPN’s Emily Kaplan has already reported that Eichel and Kaprizov are both expected to re-sign with their current teams.
That would certainly increase the likelihood of the Rangers re-upping Panarin, but a lot can change between now and next summer. Expect Drury to monitor those situations closely before jumping into any big extensions.
Even if the Big Three all stay put, there are other courses of action to weigh. What if Dallas can’t find common ground with Jason Robertson, who’s been nearly as productive as Panarin and is eight years younger? How about Kyle Connor or Martin Nečas, who are also much younger and could end up as the UFA forward headliners?
Others will surely enter the conversation, but the larger point is the Rangers must patiently size up all possibilities. And if they ultimately decide to hand Panarin a new deal, take that as a sign that they believe the most exciting alternatives won’t be viable options.
Comps for a new contract
The cost of Panarin’s next contract will be an undeniable factor, as well.
He remains New York’s highest-paid player on an average annual basis at $11.643 million per season, but that’s simply too high for a winger who will be entering the final stage of his career.
The question is, how low is he willing to go to keep his act on Broadway?
There aren’t many applicable comparisons.
John Tavares, who’s just about the same age that Panarin will be at this time next year, just went from an $11 million AAV all the way down to $4.39 million to stay in Toronto. But his desire to remain with his hometown team was well known, and he’s probably the Maple Leafs’ third- or fourth-best forward. Panarin, on the other hand, is unequivocally the Rangers’ most valuable skater.
Evgeni Malkin signed a four-year, $24.4 million extension carrying a $6.1 million AAV with Pittsburgh back in 2022. It was a significant drop from his previous $9.5 million AAV, but he was 36 and coming off a few injury-riddled seasons. He accounted for 7.39% of the cap at the time of the signing, which would be the equivalent of a $7.69 million AAV when Panarin’s new contract begins.
A sweet spot could be the four-year, $32 million deal Steven Stamkos signed with Nashville last year. He was a free agent changing teams, so it’s not quite apples to apples. But he’s a recent example of a highly accomplished player in the same age range, making it a comp the Rangers could point to.
They could comfortably match Stamkos’ $8 million AAV and still be left with enough room to chase the top-available names. The situation would get trickier if Panarin insists on staying above $10 million per season.
It’s unclear if his desire to remain a Ranger would lead to any kind of discount, but there’s enough evidence to show that paying top dollar for a 35-and-older player rarely turns out well.
Playoff shortcomings
There’s no doubt that losing No. 10 would hurt the Rangers’ regular-season production and make them less dynamic offensively. But there’s also belief that we’ve seen the Panarin-led Blueshirts max out in terms of postseason success.
They reached the Eastern Conference Final twice in a three-year span from 2022-24, but they were lacking the necessary ingredients to get over the Stanley Cup hump. Last season’s disappointment convinced Drury this core needed a shakeup, and it’s worth wondering if reallocating Panarin’s hefty cap hit will be the final step in that effort.
He’s been far less effective in playoff settings, with his points-per-game average dropping from 1.28 in the regular season to just 0.76 across 46 postseason appearances with the Rangers. It’s a source of frustration he’s been open about, with Drury and the powers-that-be recognizing that his impact diminishes in tight-checking environments.
The slightly-built Panarin, generously listed at 6-foot, 177 pounds, needs open ice for his world-class ability to shine. But he’s often been smothered by the ferocious defending teams who inevitably await in the later rounds of the playoffs.
Drury is clearly trying to take the roster in a different direction. That’s why he targeted the tenacious J.T. Miller as the team’s No. 1 center, then made shutdown defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov his top free-agent priority. Both he and new head coach Mike Sullivan want the Rangers to play a faster, more physical-and-direct style, which contrasts with Panarin’s east-west, finesse game.
Maybe adding Miller, Gavrikov and others will have the desired effect while freeing up Panarin to do his thing. But allowing the situation to play out and seeing what kind of the results the 2025-26 season yields is yet another reason to wait on an extension.
Unanswered questions regarding sexual assault accusations
Any discussion of Panarin’s future would be incomplete without considering sexual assault accusations against him by a former Rangers employee.
They came to light in an April 17 report from The Athletic, which revealed that both Panarin and the Madison Square Garden Company each agreed to pay a financial settlement while having the employee sign non-disclosure and no admission of wrongdoing clauses.
Panarin has repeatedly declined comment, while an MSG Sports spokesperson issued a statement saying, “The matter has been resolved.” The NHL put out its own statement saying the Rangers hired “an outside law firm to conduct an independent investigation” and that they, too, “consider the matter closed.”
As such, we’re left to conclude that both the team and the league reviewed the investigation and determined the allegations warranted no suspension or additional fines − but their refusal to make the findings public leaves a cloud of unknowns hanging over the situation.
The Rangers haven’t treated it like an issue that would dissuade them from keeping Panarin around, but it’s bruised his reputation among segments of the fan base.
Will that have any affect on negotiations? Add it to the long list of complicated factors.
Vincent Z. Mercogliano is the New York Rangers beat reporter for the USA TODAY Network. Read more of his work at lohud.com/sports/rangers/ and follow him on Twitter @vzmercogliano.