No, I don't either, I think that would be a no-win all the way around.
- OLDSCHOOL#6

Its tough as a fan because even if stepan is okay with whatever the rangers are offering, he's not going to accept it until last minute just because he doesn't need to and is hoping to get maybe a little pay raise at the 11th hour. But we'll be stressing the whole time.

Its tough as a fan because even if stepan is okay with whatever the rangers are offering, he's not going to accept it until last minute just because he doesn't need to and is hoping to get maybe a little pay raise at the 11th hour. But we'll be stressing the whole time.
- rangerdanger94

the Rangers cap management has put the kid in a tough spot. Stepan has access to check out cap geek just like everyone else. He can clearly see that to get a contract even as much as Michael Del Zotto is making this year, it means somebody here has to go.

the Rangers cap management has put the kid in a tough spot. Stepan has access to check out cap geek just like everyone else. He can clearly see that to get a contract even as much as Michael Del Zotto is making this year, it means somebody here has to go.
- jimbro83

I LOVE, LOVE Stepan, such a good kid, his ability & his personality. Would hate to see yet another young player put through the wringer here by Sather.

I LOVE, LOVE Stepan, such a good kid, his ability & his personality. Would hate to see yet another young player put through the wringer here by Sather.
- B2B76

not developing our own first rate forwards is the reason why we have had to go out and buy the Drury, Gomez and Richards of the world

Derek Stepan is one of the best things this franchise has done the last 20 years, don't eff around with it

the Rangers cap management has put the kid in a tough spot. Stepan has access to check out cap geek just like everyone else. He can clearly see that to get a contract even as much as Michael Del Zotto is making this year, it means somebody here has to go.
- jimbro83

Yeah, that is the plain hard truth. But, at the end of the day, the Rangers cap management isn't his responsibility. He didn't sign Pouilot and Moore, and I expect when those signings were made, Slats knew that someone had to go (if not multiple players). It's just reality, and its not Stepan's responsibility, although I imagine that he will ultimately take less to accomodate the Rangers.

But, if he signs for anything less than $3.5 million a year, he's not being very smart. You never know what can happen by way on injuries, and a player needs to get a fair contract when they have the opportunity.

I think Boyle is a goner (or Pyatt if they can find a taker), and then Stepan signs a two year bridge between $3.5 million and $4 million a year shortly thereafter.

not developing our own first rate forwards is the reason why we have had to go out and buy the Drury, Gomez and Richards of the world

Derek Stepan is one of the best things this franchise has done the last 20 years, don't eff around with it
- jimbro83

No doubt, just want a nice, clean start to camp w the AV era starting.

not developing our own first rate forwards is the reason why we have had to go out and buy the Drury, Gomez and Richards of the world

Derek Stepan is one of the best things this franchise has done the last 20 years, don't eff around with it
- jimbro83

Want to blame someone for this mess, we can start and finish with that little wiener on 6th avenue and that bigger wiener in Boston. There was no reason to lower the cap other than the greed, and the Napoleonic complex little poop. If they needed relief they could held the cap at last year's level for a couple of years. Derek Stepan is more a victim of the CBA, than he is about the signing of depth players.

Want to blame someone for this mess, we can start and finish with that little wiener on 6th avenue and that bigger wiener in Boston. There was no reason to lower the cap other than the greed, and the Napoleonic complex little poop. If they needed relief they could held the cap at last year's level for a couple of years. Derek Stepan is more a victim of the CBA, than he is about the signing of depth players.
- OLDSCHOOL#6

I can get behind this. Although to be fair, Bettman represents all 30 owners and a large enough contingent of them made the case that the only way they can survive in their markets was to get the immediate relief lowering the cap would give them. Did Bettman review their books to see if they were telling him the truth? Does he even have that right? I don't know about either of those but I do know he has to represent the best interests of the ownership collective, all 30 of them, and make a deal that works for them. I can't blame him necessarily.

Now Jacobs on the other hand, he sure seems like a greedy SOB, doesn't he?

Honestly, there is no reason to tie the salary cap ceiling and floor to the midpoint with a fixed number. They could have used a rolling percentage thus allowing themselves to lower the floor a few million to accommodate those owners who insisted they couldn't afford to spend up to $54MM in player salary.

For example; if the owners wanted a floor of $48.3MM (which is what they got) they could have called for a midpoint of $60MM (under the existing formula it is $56.3MM) and allowed teams to spend up to 20% more or less (instead of +/- $8MM) creating a ceiling of $72MM and a floor of $48MM. The lower revenue teams get what they want, a lower ceiling, but the big market teams get to spend more and the players have the opportunity earn better salaries.

Of course the small revenue teams already complain that the playing field is not level but too bad. Spend your money smarter then. Maybe this model is a little extreme but by creating a formula to set the cap floor and ceiling using fixed amounts sounds counter-intuitive to me. There was a better way to get the small market clubs what they wanted while allowing the bigger guys to flex their financial might.

I can get behind this. Although to be fair, Bettman represents all 30 owners and a large enough contingent of them made the case that the only way they can survive in their markets was to get the immediate relief lowering the cap would give them. Did Bettman review their books to see if they were telling him the truth? Does he even have that right? I don't know about either of those but I do know he has to represent the best interests of the ownership collective, all 30 of them, and make a deal that works for them. I can't blame him necessarily.

Now Jacobs on the other hand, he sure seems like a greedy SOB, doesn't he?

Honestly, there is no reason to tie the salary cap ceiling and floor to the midpoint with a fixed number. They could have used a rolling percentage thus allowing themselves to lower the floor a few million to accommodate those owners who insisted they couldn't afford to spend up to $54MM in player salary.

For example; if the owners wanted a floor of $48.3MM (which is what they got) they could have called for a midpoint of $60MM (under the existing formula it is $56.3MM) and allowed teams to spend up to 20% more or less (instead of +/- $8MM) creating a ceiling of $72MM and a floor of $48MM. The lower revenue teams get what they want, a lower ceiling, but the big market teams get to spend more and the players have the opportunity earn better salaries.

Of course the small revenue teams already complain that the playing field is not level but too bad. Spend your money smarter then. Maybe this model is a little extreme but by creating a formula to set the cap floor and ceiling using fixed amounts sounds counter-intuitive to me. There was a better way to get the small market clubs what they wanted while allowing the bigger guys to flex their financial might.
- Glen Miller

Glen, what you said in your last paragraph is why it won't happen: "Of course the small revenue teams already complain that the playing field is not level." They will claim that a wide disparity in salaries creates an unfair advantage for the bigger markets, and therefore, the cap needs to be uniform across the board with cap and floor, not allowing a team to exceed that. The NBA does it via a luxury tax, which even though Bettman came from the NBA, that won't happen in the NHL for the same reason as I just stated

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