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Alexis Lafreniere

Rangers Sign Alexis Lafrenière To Seven-Year Extension

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1:37 p.m.: Lafrenière’s deal has a front-loaded structure that includes an $8MM signing bonus when the deal goes into effect next season, Renaud Lavoie of TVA Sports reports. He’ll have a no-movement and a modified no-trade clause go into effect when he’s eligible for it beginning in 2027-28, he adds. PuckPedia has the full breakdown of the deal, adding it’s an eight-team no-trade list for the modified NTC:

2025-26: $2MM base salary, $8MM signing bonus
2026-27: $5.5MM base, $2MM SB
2027-28: $8.5MM base, $1MM SB
2028-29: $7.15MM base
2029-30: $6MM base
2030-31: $6MM base
2031-32: $6MM base

12:42 p.m.: The deal will come in at an actual AAV of $7.45MM, per PuckPedia. That’s a total value of $52.15MM.

11:54 a.m.: The Rangers are closing in on a seven-year extension with winger Alexis Lafrenière worth just under $7.6MM per season, sources tell Larry Brooks of the New York Post. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman said earlier Friday that talks between the Rangers and the pending RFA had “intensified.”

That means the deal’s total value will be in the $50-53MM range. It’s a contract that would have been inconceivable for the 2020 first-overall pick less than two years ago, a clear demonstration of how much he’s improved since the beginning of last season.

Trade rumors swirled around Lafrenière after his third season in New York. During that time, he’d failed to average over half a point per game at any stage – not an acceptable performance from a first-overall forward, even that early into their career. However, a coaching change brought Peter Laviolette behind the Rangers bench, who got Lafrenière more ice time by shifting him to right-wing after years of sticking on his natural left side.

In essence, he’s been stapled on a line with Artemi Panarin and Vincent Trocheck, a pair with which he’s developed undeniable chemistry. Lafrenière played all 82 games in 2022-23, recording a career-high 28 goals and 29 assists for 57 points while averaging over 17 minutes per night. The trio formed the Rangers’ best two-way line last season that suited up together on a regular basis, controlling 55.6% of expected goals, per MoneyPuck.

The playoffs saw Lafrenière up his per-game production even further. While the President’s Trophy winners were bounced in the Eastern Conference Final by the eventual champion Panthers, Lafrenière tied Trocheck and Chris Kreider for the team lead in goals with eight and added six assists for 14 points in 16 games. He’s carried that momentum into 2024-25, lighting the lamp four times and adding three assists for seven points in seven games, still skating with Panarin and Trocheck and averaging nearly 18 minutes per game.

Lafrenière has now converted that production into a long-term commitment from the Blueshirts, who lock him up at an extremely affordable price through the 2031-32 campaign if he keeps up his recent offensive output. His deal will go into effect next season, keeping him from reaching restricted free agency for the second time in his career. The forward inked a two-year bridge deal worth a total of $4.65MM in August 2023, far less than what he’ll be making in a single season on his new contract.

He’ll be 30 when the deal expires – he turned 23 earlier this month. That allows him to cash in again on a long-term deal while being UFA eligible, although likely not as much as he could’ve garnered if he inked a five- or six-year extension with the Rangers. For New York, signing Lafrenière now likely provides a more affordable outcome than waiting until the end of the season, especially if he keeps up his point-per-game pace from the early going.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Metro Notes: Merzļikins, Greaves, Hughes, Pesce, Lafrenière

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The Columbus Blue Jackets took the ice this morning for practice before their matchup tomorrow night against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Columbus notably had three goaltenders on the ice, and team reporter Jeff Svoboda confirmed that Elvis Merzļikins has resumed skating after nursing an upper-body injury.

It looks like Merzlikins is healthy enough to participate in tomorrow night’s contest with the team announcing they have returned netminder Jet Greaves to their AHL affiliate, the Cleveland Monsters, after serving on an emergency recall. Greaves suited up in two games for the Blue Jackets on the recall but spent the entire time on the bench with fellow goaltender Daniil Tarasov taking both starts.

It’s anyone’s guess who the Blue Jackets will choose to start tomorrow night’s contest with Merzlikins and Tarasov producing similar numbers to start the 2024-25 regular season. According to Hockey Reference, the two have combined for a 2-3-0 record through five games with a .869 save percentage and a -4.0 goals save above average. The deciding factor may hinge on Merzlikins’ health summary tomorrow morning.

Other Metro notes:

  • The New Jersey Devils sent defenseman Seamus Casey to AHL Utica this morning in exchange for Daniil Misyul despite the former scoring three goals and four points in his first eight NHL contests. Team reporter Amanda Stein revealed additional content for the move mentioning that although defensemen Luke Hughes and Brett Pesce won’t suit up tomorrow night, their return “is imminent”. The two undoubtedly will improve New Jersey’s chances of returning to the NHL playoffs next spring as they currently sit ninth in the NHL in points percentage through eight games.
  • Mollie Walker of the New York Post reported mild injury news for the New York Rangers sharing forward Alexis Lafrenière is day-to-day with an upper-body injury. Lafrenière has been one of the team’s best forwards out of the gate with three goals and six points in five games while averaging 17:45 of ice time per night. With it being the last game of the team’s current three-game road trip, he may be on the shelf tomorrow against the Montreal Canadiens depending on the injury’s severity.

Rangers, Alexis Lafrenière Discussing Long-Term Extension

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The Rangers have a few high-profile pending free agents. While none of them eclipse the value of potential top UFA goalie Igor Shesterkin, 2020 first-overall pick Alexis Lafrenière has finally broken out as a core piece of their top-six forward group. He’ll be an RFA next summer without a new deal.

While a report at the beginning of the summer from USA Today’s Vince Z. Mercogliano indicated Lafrenière was unlikely to kick off extension negotiations over the summer, that wasn’t the case. Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff said late last night that they’ve been discussing different contract options for a few months, including an eight-year deal in the $64MM range.

That offer undoubtedly indicates the massive step in the right direction Lafrenière took last season. The two-time CHL Player of the Year was finally given a lengthy runway in top-flight minutes alongside Artemi Panarin and Vincent Trocheck last year after Peter Laviolette took over behind the bench, responding with a career-high 28 goals and 57 points in 82 games. It still wasn’t quite the level of production most initially expected him to provide, but if his 14 points in 16 playoff games to end the year were a sign of things to come, he’s looking at another significant leap forward in 2024-25.

The Quebec native is still just 23 years old (his birthday is today), and he’ll play his 300th regular-season game when the Blueshirts host Utah tomorrow. While he’s only produced at a half-point-per-game clip throughout that time, he’s also had enough NHL opportunities to demonstrate a linear development path offensively over the past couple of years. With a consistently positive trajectory entering his prime, an $8MM AAV may be a gamble worth taking on a long-term deal for Rangers general manager Chris Drury to keep one of his top players cost-controlled through the rest of their championship contention window.

Lafrenière is in the back half of a two-year, $4.65MM bridge deal he signed after his entry-level contract expired in 2023. An $8MM AAV would be nearly a 350% raise on what he’s currently making.

The Rangers could likely shoulder it without too much fanfare. That would give them roughly $67MM wrapped up in 12 players for 2025-26. While that would leave only $25.5MM to fill 11 roster spots with a projected salary cap rise to $92.5MM, most expect them to try and move the final year of captain Jacob Trouba’s deal at an $8MM cap hit after failing to do so this offseason. Suppose they get a long-term deal done with Lafrenière in that range. In that case, it shouldn’t severely handicap their ability to retain Shesterkin and refresh their depth as they gear up to remain in championship contention through the rest of the decade.

Snapshots: Team Canada, Pacioretty, Marushev

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True best-on-best men’s hockey is only about six months away from making its return at the 4 Nations Face-Off. The countries participating have already named their first six roster players for the event, with Canada already confirming they’ll be taking Connor McDavid, Nathan MacKinnon, Sidney Crosby, Cale Makar, Brayden Point and Brad Marchand.

But there are still many roster decisions still to be made, especially for the league’s most common nationality. To that end, Luke Fox of Sportsnet listed some dark-horse youngsters that could challenge for spots. Most of them would be repping the senior team for the first time, although a few have World Championship experience.

Look for Quinton Byfield, Alexis Lafrenière and Mason McTavish to get outside consideration for bottom-six roles, Fox opines, while Thomas Harley and Owen Power will push to find spots on the blue line. But the biggest question mark at any international event for the Canadians recently has been goaltending, and that won’t change for the February tournament.

As such, look for Blues backup Joel Hofer to push for a spot on the final roster, Fox says. The 24-year-old finished 11th in Calder Trophy voting last season after posting a 15-12-1 record, .913 SV% and 2.65 GAA in 27 starts and three relief appearances behind Jordan Binnington in St. Louis.

Other tidbits from around the league:

  • If the Sharks aren’t content with the veteran pickups they’ve made so far this offseason, they should approach free-agent winger Max Pacioretty about attending training camp on a PTO, opines Max Miller of The Hockey News. San Jose was busy insulating rookies Macklin Celebrini and Will Smith this summer, adding Tyler Toffoli and Alexander Wennberg in free agency and claiming Barclay Goodrow off waivers from the Rangers. But the club could still have a bit of a competition brewing for roster spots up front, especially if captain Logan Couture isn’t healthy enough to return to play after osteitis pubis cost him nearly all of 2023-24. Pacioretty has played just 91 games combined over the past three seasons due to multiple Achilles tendon tears, and the 35-year-old had just four goals in 47 games with the Capitals last year.
  • Former Golden Knights prospect Maxim Marushev is on the move in his native Russia, dropping down from the KHL to the VHL with Metallurg Novokuznetsk for 2024-25 (per a team announcement). Marushev, now 25, was a seventh-round pick of the Golden Knights in 2020. He played parts of three seasons for their AHL affiliate, the Henderson Silver Knights, recording 13 goals and 24 assists for 37 points in 125 games. Upon the expiry of his entry-level contract in 2023, he wasn’t issued a qualifying offer and returned home. However, he managed just one point in 28 KHL games last year, split between Chelyabinsk and Novosibirsk.

Snapshots: Houston, Lafrenière, Cooke

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Despite NHL commissioner Gary Bettman saying recently that league expansion wasn’t imminent, many didn’t believe him. In fact, his comments re-ignited an expansion discussion that was already hot, bringing it to a fervor not quite seen in a while. One city that’s remained a constant in expansion discussions over the past few cycles is Houston. TSN’s Chris Johnston boosted a report from the Houston Chronicle’s Jonathan Feigen today, pointing out that the Toyota Center in downtown Houston is undergoing significant renovations: one of them being the addition of ice-making equipment in a big first step to bring the arena to NHL readiness.

The addition is part of an ongoing $30MM renovation to the arena, currently the home of the NBA’s Houston Rockets. The Rockets owner, Tilman Fertitta, will likely be the name to put in a bid for an NHL franchise should the league take applications for team 33 (and potentially 34) soon. Houston, the fifth-largest TV market in the United States, hasn’t had a notable pro hockey team since the AHL’s Houston Aeros were relocated to become the Iowa Wild in 2013.

Elsewhere around the league tonight:

  • After a much-publicized disappointing preseason, there’s more bad news for New York Rangers winger Alexis Lafrenière. The team announced Saturday night he’s day-to-day with an upper-body injury and did not practice today. While he is likely to start the season on his off-wing alongside Filip Chytil and Artemi Panarin, it certainly hasn’t been the start under new head coach Peter Laviolette that Lafrenière has been looking for. The 21-year-old first-overall pick in 2020 had 39 points in 81 games last season.
  • Many NHL fans from the 2000s and early 2010s will remember enforcer Matt Cooke, who earned himself many lengthy suspensions over the course of his 16-season, 1,046-game NHL career. After only coaching for a few seasons at the high school level in Minnesota since retiring in 2015, he’s now being entrusted with the head coaching job of an NHL affiliate. The ECHL’s Newfoundland Growlers, the second-tier affiliate of the Toronto Maple Leafs, announced today Cooke will be their next head coach. Cooke succeeds Eric Wellwood, who was promoted to an assistant role with the AHL’s Toronto Marlies last summer.

East Notes: Nylander, Pinto, Lafrenière

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The Toronto Maple Leafs are returning to an experiment that’s yielded middling returns at best when tried in the past. Head coach Sheldon Keefe is beginning training camp by utilizing William Nylander at center, putting the Swede back in the position he played when he was drafted in a crucial year for both team and player.

In theory, the move could pay serious dividends if kept long-term. It allows Keefe to roll out Nylander, Auston Matthews and John Tavares on three separate units while letting David Kämpf hone his shutdown specialty in a fourth-line role. If Nylander can adapt to playing down the middle, it would also give more support to a rag-tag group of wingers made up of skilled free-agent signings on one-year deals and youngsters looking to prove they can handle full-time roles. He hasn’t ever stuck as a full-time center, however, and he was famously moved there by former head coach Mike Babcock during the postseason early in his career. It didn’t work out – he scored just three goals through his first three playoff series, but he’s exploded since then and solidified himself as a consistent playoff performer – which is more than other stars on the team can say.

Elsewhere in the Eastern Conference today:

  • Things are still progressing on the Shane Pinto front for the Ottawa Senators. The RFA remains without a contract as training camp looms in a matter of hours now, but general manager Pierre Dorion tells TSN’s Claire Hanna he’s getting “creative” in freeing up cap space to sign the young center. Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch also chimed in today, reporting the Sens and Pinto aren’t far apart on a new deal but that many moving parts (i.e., creating cap space via trade) still need to get worked out. While it’s anyone’s guess if Pinto will be in attendance for the first day of training camp, it does seem the wheels are in motion to make things work, and it won’t be too much longer before he reports, new contract in hand.
  • New York Rangers head coach Peter Laviolette says he’ll open camp with 2020 first-overall pick Alexis Lafrenière at right wing. Many have speculated a move to his off-wing could be beneficial for the 21-year-old, who’s struggled to find ice time on the left wing behind Chris Kreider and Artemi Panarin. It could work out to be a prudent move for the Rangers’ new bench boss, as getting both Lafrenière and Kaapo Kakko clicking in top-six roles out of the gate alongside the team’s veteran firepower would be incredibly impactful for their long-term futures with the team.

New York Rangers Sign Alexis Lafrenière

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August 24: The Rangers confirmed today they’ve agreed to terms with Lafrenière on a two-year contract extension but did not disclose the AAV or cap hit.

August 23: Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports that the New York Rangers are closing on a contract extension with forward Alexis Lafreniere. Furthermore, Larry Brooks of the New York Post indicates that it will be a two-year, $4.65MM ($2.325MM AAV) contract between the two sides.

Before this contract becomes finalized between the Rangers and Lafreniere, the team had approximately $2.28MM in cap space, meaning New York will now have to make a move to become salary cap compliant prior to the season beginning in October. With eight defensemen penciled into the starting lineup per CapFriendly, one of those players will likely be sent to the minors to make room for Lafreniere’s contract.

It’s a relatively low-risk move by the Rangers, given that Lafreniere has yet to play up to his first overall selection in the 2020 NHL Draft. However, under new head coach Peter Laviolette, perhaps Lafreniere could get sufficient ice time next season to adequately show off his skill level. In 216 games played through his entry-level contract, Lafreniere has only mustered 47 goals and 44 assists, averaging about 14 and a half minutes of ice time per night.

Besides a bit of a slow start, Lafreniere actually procured a solid season last year. He scored a career-high in points, putting up 16 goals and 23 assists in 81 games, also continuing to improve his CF%, as well as his oiSH%. Even after signing Blake Wheeler to a league-minimum deal at the beginning of free agency, there is definitely some room for Lafreniere to move up in the lineup to fill the spot on right wing.

At still only 21 years old, it’s not quite make-or-break time for Lafreniere quite yet, but the clock does appear to be ticking on his time with the Rangers. Earlier this offseason, although not much came of it, Lafreniere had his name rumored in some trade speculation.

If he earns himself the opportunity for more ice time under Laviolette, Lafreniere could break out into a premier winger in the NHL. Given this two-year deal, Lafreniere and the Rangers will have a bit more time for him to live up to his draft selection.

East Notes: Lafreniere, Ovechkin, Panthers

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While Alexis Lafreniere is one of 13 restricted free agents still looking for a contract for next season, he told Simon-Olivier Lorange of La Presse that discussions are ongoing and that he’s hoping to see a deal reached within the next few weeks.  The 2020 top pick has had some ups and downs in his young career as he looks to secure a full-time spot in the top six for the Rangers.  Coming off a 39-point season and the fact that New York’s cap space is quite limited, it’s a lock that Lafreniere won’t be getting a long-term agreement when an agreement is reached.  At this point, the question is likely more if he’ll be receiving a one-year bridge deal or a two-year pact.  Either way, he’ll have arbitration eligibility when that contract expires.

Elsewhere in the East:

  • In an interview with Mikhail Zislis of Sport-Express, Capitals winger Alex Ovechkin indicated that he was pleased with Washington’s decision to hire Spencer Carbery as their new coach, citing Carbery’s familiarity with the organization having spent time as the coach with AHL Hershey. The 37-year-old was also asked about the possibility of changing teams one day but answered that unless the team asked him to accept a move, it wouldn’t make sense for him to move on as long as everything continues to suit him.  Ovechkin has three years left on his contract with a $9.5MM AAV.
  • While the Panthers have some short-term wiggle room from a salary cap perspective with both Aaron Ekblad and Brandon Montour likely to start on LTIR, George Richards of Florida Hockey Now figures that Florida is done on the free agent front this summer. They were active on the back end on the open market, adding four players that project to be on their roster when the season starts while they also added Evan Rodrigues and Kevin Stenlund up front.  Eric Staal, who spent most of 2022-23 on the fourth line, is still unsigned but Richards feels he’s unlikely to accept a PTO this time around without a likely roster spot available for him; Stenlund is likely to fill that particular spot on the depth chart.

Where Does Alexis Lafreniere Fit In The Rangers’ Lineup?

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The New York Rangers selected Kaapo Kakko and Alexis Lafreniere with back-to-back top-two picks in the 2019 and 2020 NHL Drafts, offering the team some key pieces to a short rebuild and a quick turnaround after the Ryan McDonagh and Henrik Lundqvist era of contending teams drew to a close. Things haven’t gone quite as planned for Kakko and Lafreniere individually since then, however.

Lafreniere now sits as the only remaining Ranger RFA left unsigned this offseason, and he needs a new deal in the next few weeks if he’s to be with the team on the first day of training camp. The team has the cap space to get it done with $2.278MM given a 22-player roster, per CapFriendly, but it’ll be a tight fit. Surely one thing Lafreniere is trying to flesh out is the role he’ll have on the team given a new coach behind the bench – Peter Laviolette. Some would say the outgoing head coach, Gerard Gallant, didn’t utilize Lafreniere as much as he should. Others would say Lafreniere hasn’t done enough to earn a bump in ice time.

He hasn’t hit the potential he showed in his 112-point draft-year season with the QMJHL’s Rimouski Océanic, but he’s been a capable depth scorer who’s put up double-digit goal totals in each of his three NHL seasons so far. In 2020-21, his rookie campaign, he notched 12 goals, nine assists and 21 points while playing in all 56 games in a third-line role during the COVID-shortened season. He didn’t receive any ice time increase in his sophomore campaign, though, likely the biggest offense that those not fond of Gallant’s handling of the young prospect will point to. His production didn’t see a jump as a result, and he posted just 31 points in 79 games. He saw a small uptick last season, finishing with 16 goals, 23 points and 39 points in 81 games.

It’s easy to worry about time running out for Lafreniere thanks to three years of relative stagnation. However, he jumped into the league straight from juniors at 18 years old, meaning he’s still just 21 – there’s still another three or four seasons before he truly enters his prime. While it’s rare to see a non-linear path toward stardom, especially for highly-touted prospects, it’s not unheard of. While New Jersey Devils captain Nico Hischier put up solid two-way results since Day 1, it took a solid three or four years for his offensive production to jump to the near point-per-game we expect from him today.

While it isn’t time to give up hope on Lafreniere entirely, we still are approaching make-or-break territory over the next two seasons. Potentially in an unfortunate turn of events for Lafreniere’s development, the Rangers are now fully in contending mode. Will they be willing to spend the resources and make the adjustments necessary for Lafreniere’s individual growth? Given the age of some of their core players, it seems prudent to make all efforts to help Lafreniere approach bonafide top-six territory in hopes of him helping extend their contention window.

That starts now under the Laviolette regime. Is the veteran coach prepared to give Lafreniere a top-six role by moving him to his off-wing? Blake Wheeler was brought in this offseason and has a long history of playing a top-six role for the Winnipeg Jets, but at his age, he’s shown he’s primarily a playmaking specialist over the past few seasons and is entering defensive liability territory if he wasn’t there already. You could argue there isn’t room for a player with as many holes in his game as Wheeler in the top six of a team looking to lift the Stanley Cup.

Lafreniere may not have the point totals, but today, he’s a better finisher than Wheeler, with less to worry about defensively. It could warrant a bump in ice time alongside Artemi Panarin and Vincent Trocheck or Chris Kreider and Mika Zibanejad, assuming Laviolette keeps those combinations together from last season.

Kakko looks to have a more solid grip on a top-six role after spending a decent chunk of last season on the right wing with Kreider and Zibanejad. That line dominated possession for the Rangers, posting the highest expected goals share of any three-man line with more than 100 minutes together for New York last season, according to MoneyPuck. It would be prudent for Laviolette not to mess with a good thing.

Another thing to consider – could the Rangers shuffle Trocheck in their middle-six and pair Lafreniere and Panarin with Filip Chytil down the middle? The latter broke out for 22 goals in 74 games last season and is entering the first year of a four-year, $17.75MM extension he signed in March. If the team is looking for their young talent to gain experience in tougher roles when the guard eventually changes to them, it could be a move worth thinking about.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

East Notes: Rangers, Sabres, Svechnikov

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The cap situation for the Rangers has limited them for the most part this summer.  Accordingly, Larry Brooks of the New York Post opines that the best chance they have to take a step forward next season might be to take a step back out of the gate and give their young trio of Alexis Lafreniere (still an unsigned restricted free agent), Kaapo Kakko, and Filip Chytil extended looks in offensive roles.  With a forward group that skews older otherwise, New York’s best chance for offensive growth might very well be those three younger options taking a step forward in their development.  The Rangers are certainly in win-now mode which might make it seem counter-intuitive to potentially have some early struggles while evaluating those players in those roles but if they can hit another gear offensively, they could certainly be dangerous offensively when the playoffs come around.

Elsewhere in the East:

  • The Sabres have reached a new ECHL affiliation agreement for next season as Lance Lysowski of The Buffalo News reports that Buffalo will be partnered up with Jacksonville, formerly an affiliate of the Rangers. Buffalo had been with Cincinnati since 2017 but needed a new one when the Rangers signed with that franchise; this move basically makes it a trade of affiliates.  A press conference is scheduled for Monday to make it official.
  • Hurricanes winger Andrei Svechnikov returned to the ice on Friday as he works his way back from ACL surgery, notes team reporter Walt Ruff. The 23-year-old made his first All-Star appearance last season while picking up 23 goals and 32 assists in 64 games before suffering the injury in March.  At the time, the procedure carried a recovery of six to nine months; October (when the season starts) is near the short end of that timeline so it’s not a guarantee that Svechnikov will be ready on opening night.

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