We already know that the New York Rangers are interested in Shane Doan, and that in terms of the 2012-13 season, they have the salary cap room to sign him. In fact, most of what's been published on the Phoenix Coyotes captain seems to have been written under the impression that the Blueshirts are the favorites to acquire Doan's services if he chooses to leave the Arizona desert (and to be fair, most of what's been published acknowledges that Doan's first preference is to remain in Phoenix, hence his seemingly infinite patience with Greg Jamison and his group of prospective buyers).
However, it's been asked - and it's worth asking and answering - whether the Rangers can really afford Doan at a price of $28 million over four years.
Here's what we know right now. Based on the current salary cap of $70.2 million, the Rangers have $11.6 million in salary cap space, with defenseman Michael Del Zotto still a restricted free agent. If the Rangers want to throw caution to the wind and make a Cup-or-bust run in 2012-13, then they can certainly sign Doan, re-sign Del Zotto for between $3 and $4 million, and go for it.
The question, however, is what would happen after that.
Four Rangers are due to become restricted free agents next summer: forwards Derek Stepan and Carl Hagelin and defensemen Ryan McDonagh and Michael Sauer. If Doan were to sign in New York for $7 million per year, the Rangers would have about $11 million in salary cap space to sign all four players. Given Sauer's lingering issues from a concussion - he's questionable for the start of the coming season - it's conceivable that the Rangers might not be interested in bringing him back, but still, those four players would cost significantly more next summer than the $4.3 million they're due to make in 2012-13, and having so much money tied up in Doan could leave the Rangers unable to match an offer sheet for one of their prized players.
Things get even wilder in the summer of 2014, with only Rick Nash, Brad Richards and Marc Staal signed for the 2014-15 season, the Rangers will have a lot of work to do in two years' time, and it's uncertain how much Doan would affect the Rangers plans at that point.
We've seen teams load up for a Cup run and then be forced to ship off key players shortly thereafter, with the 2010 Chicago Blackhawks being the most notable example. Could the Rangers find themselves headed in that direction with a deal for Doan? Maybe. Does that mean it's not worth doing? Not necessarily.
