The NY Rangers signed Lee Stempniak to a free agent deal this past week and the team now can concentrate on bringing back Derick Brassard, Chris Kreider and John Moore, as all those forwards are restricted free agents and they are key parts of the team that made it to the Stanley Cup finals last season and lost to the Los Angeles Kings and now they have come in on a deal with Mats Zuccarello.
Reports have the team far apart with Kreider right now and the Rangers have a number of players to sign and this comes after they released Brad Richards and also lost Anton Stralman and Brian Boyle to free agent deals. According to ESPN.com, the deal for Stempniak is under $1 million and that leaves the team over $10 million of space to sign restricted free agents they have in Derick Brassard, Mats Zuccarello, and Chris Kreider offense, as well as defenseman John Moore.
Last season Stempniak played in 73 games with the Penguins and Flames and he scored 12 goals and 22 assists. Stempniak also played in the playoffs for the Penguins and had three points in 13 games, with the run ending against the Rangers when they came back from a 3-1 deficit in the series. Stempniak is not a high goal scorer, but he has been consistent and he has been in double digits in six of his nine seasons in the league and now the Rangers can concentrate on their most important players to bring back.
Derick Brassard was acquired in a trade and has been a strong player for the team, while John Moore has also been very good, including in the playoffs last season. Mats Zuccarello was an undrafted free agent that the team plucked from Europe and he has been one of their most consistent offensive players, while Kreider has lived up to his billing as a first round pick.
