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Rangers will buy out Dan Girardi’s contract

By Dave Stevenson

Dec 20, 2016; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; New York Rangers defenseman Dan Girardi (5) takes the ice before playing the Pittsburgh Penguins at the PPG PAINTS Arena. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 20, 2016; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; New York Rangers defenseman Dan Girardi (5) takes the ice before playing the Pittsburgh Penguins at the PPG PAINTS Arena. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports /
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The New York Rangers are buying out the contract of long-time defenseman Dan Girardi. 

Going into the 2017 NHL offseason, the New York Rangers are looking to address their blue line. They did a great job adding skill to their forward group last offseason, but their defense wound up costing them. With Henrik Lundqvist finally starting to show his age, the Rangers realize they have to make their blue line better. To do this, New York needs cap space. The team announced they’ll buy out the contract of defenseman Dan Girardi to help with this.

Buying out his contract should give the Rangers a little bit of breathing room. Girardi’s cap hit for next season will be $2,611,111. This is a savings of $2,888,889. That should help them re-sign Brendan Smith, who did well for them as a trade deadline acquisition. It could potentially help them sign coveted free agent defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk.

He released a statement via the Rangers website.

"I poured my heart and soul into this team for the past 11 seasons and I enjoyed every minute of it. I want to acknowledge that the Rangers are a first class organization who have always treated our players in a first class fashion. My family and I are most grateful for the way we have been treated during our stay in New York."

Here are the full details for Girardi’s buy out.

SEASONSALARYINITIAL CAP HITACTUAL COSTSAVINGSBUYOUT CAP HIT
2017-18$4,000,000$5,500,000$1,111,111$2,888,889$2,611,111
2018-19$3,000,000$5,500,000$1,111,111$1,888,889$3,611,111
2019-20$3,000,000$5,500,000$1,111,111$1,888,889$3,611,111
2020-21$0$0$1,111,111-$1,111,111$1,111,111
2021-22$0$0$1,111,111-$1,111,111$1,111,111
2022-23$0$0$1,111,111-$1,111,111$1,111,111

While he will start costing them money in 2020-21, his buyout cap hit is a reasonable $1,111,111 in each of those seasons. It saves them over $9 million for the next three seasons, which is what’s important for the Rangers.

Next: NHL Mock Expansion Draft

Girardi leaves New York after 11 seasons and 788 regular season games. Including the postseason, he spent 910 games with the organization. Girardi had 230 points with the Rangers during the regular season.

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