- Pavel Dorofeyev signed a seven-year, $77 million contract with the Rangers on Tuesday
- The deal carries an $11 million cap hit for the 25-year-old who scored 37 goals last season
- Read below for the trade that brought him to New York and why Vegas had to move on
The Rangers found their goal scorer, and they paid up to keep him.
Pavel Dorofeyev signed a seven-year, $77 million contract with New York on Tuesday, the team announced. It carries an $11 million average annual value.
He could have become a restricted free agent on Wednesday. New York locked him up a day early instead of risking arbitration.
The 25-year-old is coming off a career year, with 37 goals, 27 assists and 64 points in 82 games for Vegas. He added 16 points in 22 playoff games as the Golden Knights reached the Stanley Cup Final.
New York acquired him last Friday. Vegas sent Dorofeyev east for the No. 26 pick and a third-rounder (No. 92) in this year’s draft, plus a conditional 2028 first-round pick.
Money drove the move. Vegas GM Kelly McCrimmon couldn’t fit a raise for a restricted free agent with arbitration rights, so he flipped Dorofeyev for picks before the cost climbed any higher.
New York needed exactly this kind of swing. They finished last in the Eastern Conference at 34-39-9 and missed the playoffs for a second straight year.
Dorofeyev’s 37 goals would have led the Rangers last season. Now he is theirs through 2032-33.
