from Brett Cyrgalis of the New York Post,
So it’s going to come down to the wire with Derek Stepan and the Rangers, as the first-line center had not yet reached a contract agreement as of Sunday evening and his arbitration hearing is set for Monday in Toronto.
The Post has learned the 25-year-old restricted free agent is going into the hearing asking for $7.25 million and the club is offering $5.2 million, both on a one-year deal. With the independent arbiter able to pick any value of his choosing — a different process than the “pick-one” used in other sports — that would leave the middle ground of $6.225 million, a seemingly reasonable evaluation. The one-year deal and manageable salary would also make Stepan easy to trade if the Rangers find themselves as sellers come the deadline.
The team is pressed up near the $71.4 million ceiling of the salary cap, with 21 players signed and about $7.35 million remaining without Stepan.
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