The Rangers have a Ryan Strome-sized problem – namely, last season’s 59 points in 70 games total was inflated by the virtue of skating alongside perennial Hart Trophy candidate Artemi Panarin.
That kind of production will push Strome’s earning power beyond what he’s realistically worth on the open market. In all likelihood, an arbitration awarding would push near, or possibly exceed, $5 million. While Strome meshed nicely with Panarin and provided 14 power play assists, it’s hard to imagine the 27-year-old replicating his 2019-20 success in any other scenario.
Then, there’s the issue of his deficiencies that glare even when his offensive game is at its highest. His blemishes on the defensive end and tendency to take undisciplined penalties were apparent throughout the regular season, and were magnified during a qualifying round sweep at the hands of the Carolina Hurricanes.
Simply put, Strome isn’t a $5 million center or an ideal No. 2 center – but that won’t prevent him from receiving an arbitration ruling that pays him like one. If Strome was an ideal No. 2 center, the Rangers would have already inked him to a long-term contract and wouldn’t be toying with the idea of promoting Filip Chytil to the Panarin line.
Could the Rangers simply walk away from Strome? Perhaps, but this sort of acrimonious divorce rarely happens. His arbitration date is set for Nov. 5, and the Rangers have the right to walk away from Strome if his arbitration ruling exceeds $4,538,958.
That said, because of this offseason’s unique arbitration rules, Strome also has the right to return to the Rangers on their arbitration bid in the event that the club walks away from the arbitrator’s ruling. If that scenario was to play out, any NHL team would be able to extend Strome a higher offer within four days and sign Strome as a free agent.
Just to play devil’s advocate, who would the Rangers target if they walked away from Strome or lost him through free agency?
If Strome signs elsewhere, it would be wise for the Rangers to consider Finnish center Mikael Granlund on a one-year “show me” deal. For Granlund, it would make sense to sacrifice immediate earning power for the possibility of centering the Panarin line in an attempt to raise his future earning potential.
Though his production dipped to 30 points in 63 games for the Nashville Predators last season, Granlund posted over 65 points in two seasons for the Minnesota Wild. In all, Granlund is a more complete center than Strome because of his possession numbers and penalty-killing prowess.
Andreas Athanasiou is another interesting free agent center coming off a down year with two-way ability. Given his versatility, speed, and size, some team will end up with a solid bounce-back candidate on the cheap.
Follow Sean Hartnett on Twitter: @HartnettHockey
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