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Derek Stepan Contract Worth Every Penny

By Diana Driscoll |

Start spreading the news! (if you haven’t already). Derek Stepan is staying in New York. He and the New York Rangers avoided arbitration by agreeing to a six-year deal, worth $39 million with an average annual value of $6.5 million.

That’s a nice chunk of change for a quasi No. 1 center (Derick Brassard is really the New York’s No. 1 center now). So, of course I was interested in what others thought about this.

All over social media, people were trying to put this contract into context. They were mentioning Ryan O’Reilly (and how he ruined the NHL with his deal), John Tavares the uber-talented captain of the New York Islanders who is now getting paid less than Stepan, and even Phil Kessel.

Some fans were just so happy that Stepan signed, others were flabbergasted by the Rangers giving that much money to Stepan.

For me, well, I see this contract as just the beginning of what we will see moving forward. As the salary cap rises, so will the amount of money players get. As years go on, we will see more players getting yearly paychecks that are closer, if not in, the double digits. So, will some be overpaid? Sure, but that’s how things go sometimes.

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Do I think Stepan deserved $6.5 million AAV? Uh I don’t know (I was more about $5.5-$6), but I don’t hate the contract (mostly because I am not writing the checks). Stepan is a major, major piece of the puzzle for the Rangers. They would not be able to get far next year without him.

Could you see the Rangers lineup without him? It would be awfully thin. Stepan has been playing at the NHL level since 2010. I wouldn’t consider that veteran status, but he isn’t new to the landscape. This type of experience is invaluable to the Rangers, as they have plenty of young players trying to establish their footing in the league. Stepan is not too far removed from his rookie season, and any advice or leadership he can bring will only benefit the Rangers’ young stars moving forward.

Sure, he can obviously improve on various areas of the game, but Stepan is just starting to hit his stride. He is 25 years old and I don’t think any other center on the team matches his two-way play. The Rangers need all the help they can get in the center position. They have Brassard, Dominic Moore and J.T. Miller. Not bad, but not great. But add Stepan to the mix and your center position just got that much more stable. Think about it, Stepan will only be in his early 30s when the contract expires, so the Rangers will get his most productive years.

As it has been noted in recent articles, centers (good centers) are really hard to come by. It’s why they, for the most part, are paid more than wingers. When you have the opportunity to lock up a center like Stepan, you do it. Centers control the play; everything filters through them. You need someone capable to do the job right.

Clearly, Stepan is an asset to the Rangers.

The only hiccup in the contract? The no movement clause.

I am not a fan of these. It puts teams in a bind if the contract doesn’t work out. It’s not impossible to move the player with a NTC, but it gets much harder. Hopefully, this contract will and the Rangers won’t have to worry about moving Stepan.

Overall, I think Jeff Gorton’s first major step as GM went well. He locked up Stepan for six years and didn’t have to pay O’Reilly money.

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