Rangers re-signing Julien Gauthier has intriguing implications

The Rangers signed another of their restricted free agents ahead of Seattle Kraken’s expansion draft.

Julien Gauthier accepted a one-year contract on Friday morning, the team announced, making the beefy winger another option for the Rangers to meet the requirement to expose two forwards who are under contract in 2021-22 in next week’s expansion draft. According to PuckPedia, Gauthier signed a two-pronged contract for $ 775,000 in the NHL and $ 300,000 in minors with $ 325,000 guaranteed.

Gauthier’s signing, along with RFA Brett Howden, gives the Rangers an overabundance of attackers that could indicate a bigger move underway.

The Hurricanes traded Gauthier to the Rangers in February 2020 in exchange for defenseman Joey Keane. After appearing in just 12 games in his debut season on Broadway, recording two assists, Gauthier was part of the opening night roster in 2020-21.

Despite the fact that Gauthier, 6-4, 227 pounds, was one of the few Rangers who could attack the net effectively, the former coaching staff, led by David Quinn, felt the 23-year-old was still adjusting to the rhythm of the NHL and could improve. Gauthier has been sidelined many times in the past season and immediately slipped to the right when Vitali Kravtsov entered the scene in April.

In 30 games in 2020-2021, Gauthier scored two goals and collected six assists with 14 penalty minutes.

Before new chairman and chief executive Chris Drury replaced the former Rangers’ management duo of Jeff Gorton and John Davidson and sacked Quinn, it was clear Gauthier was the odd one on the roster and would likely have been exposed. in the expansion draft. But Drury and new coach Gérard Gallant might see it differently.

Gauthier is young and has valuable skills that can be developed, but the Rangers may not be willing to deal with his recurring issues at the defensive end and away from the puck.

NHL teams are due to submit their final protective rosters by Saturday for the Seattle expansion draft on July 23. Kraken general manager Ron Francis knows Gauthier well after drafting the Quebec 21 native^st in total in 2016 out of the QMJHL when he was at the head of the Hurricanes.