from Larry Brooks of the New York Post,

So lo and behold there is renewed urgency to settle this Jack Eichel matter, and it is good to see that Slap Shots missed absolutely nothing during our annual late summer hiatus.

And, also pretty much right where we left it, we are being told alternately by well-placed sources that the Rangers are, A) pretty skeptical of the value of dealing for Eichel; and, B) in regular communication with the Sabres over this matter.

Can both things be true at once? Probably. Maybe.

But here is one truth: if the Rangers do become active bidders for Eichel, it won’t necessarily be because they prefer the Sabres’ excommunicated ex-captain to Mika Zibanejad, but because they know they won’t be able to sign No. 93 to a contract extension.

Remember, unless the Sabres agree to eat 40 or 50 percent of Eichel’s $10 million annual cap charge, the math will prohibit the Rangers from having both him and Zibanejad past this season given the extremely tight squeeze the club will confront starting next season.

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So, won’t the NHL be so proud when the first 10-year-old is spotted wearing the “authentic” 2022-23 Caps jersey with an advertisement of a bookmaking operation plastered on the uniform?