Maybe Kevin Hayes isn’t in the long-term plan for the Rangers, but management bought themselves some time to figure that out.
The Blueshirts signed the 26-year-old center to a one-year, $5.125 million deal Monday, avoiding an arbitration date for the restricted free agent that was set for Thursday. It was a hefty price to pay for the rebuilding Rangers, as Hayes was coming off a two-year bridge deal that carried a $2.6 million annual salary-cap hit.
Hayes is now set for unrestricted free agency after this season, which makes him an attractive trade chip come the deadline if general manager Jeff Gorton wants to continue stockpiling prospects and draft picks.