The New York Rangers will buy out veteran defenseman Dan Girardi, the team announced Wednesday. Girardi, who had three years remaining on his contract, will become an unrestricted free agent when the move is completed.
Girardi’s buyout puts a cap hit on the Rangers’ books for the next six seasons while saving New York both money and cap space. Instead of having a $5.5 million cap hit through the 2019-20 season, New York will have lower cap hits through the 2022-23 season.
Here’s a breakdown of the annual cap hits, via Cap Friendly:
2017-18: $2,611,111
2018-19: $3,611,111
2019-20: $3,611,111
2020-21: $1,111,111
2021-22: $1,111,111
2022-23: $1,111,111
The move also saves the Rangers real money. Girardi was set to be paid $10 million in base salary for the next three years. Now he’ll get paid $1,111,111 each year, which comes out to a total of $6.67 million in the end, saving the franchise over $3 million.
Girardi, 33, originally signed the six-year, $33 million contract with New York in February 2014. He has a no-movement clause, which won’t prevent the buyout but does mean he won’t need to be put on waivers beforehand.
During the 2016-17 season, Girardi recorded four goals and 11 assists in 63 games. He saw his ice time dip to 19:06 per game, the lowest average since his rookie season. The Rangers posted a dreadful 44 percent even strength Corsi with him on the ice. For the fourth straight season, New York’s EV Corsi was at least 5.5 percent higher with him on the bench.
Thus brought the end of Girardi’s career in New York as the Rangers gear to make changes. They need to maximize their chances while Henrik Lundqvist is still around, and having Girardi at a $5.5 million cap hit was just too much. With the buyout, the team gains some flexibility, saves some money, and loses a player whose career might be on its last legs anyway.