Breaking: Dan Girardi Will be Bought Out

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The Rangers announced that they will buy out the remainder of defenseman Dan Girardi’s contract. The rugged 33-year-old had been a staple on the Rangers blue line for each of the last ten seasons, after being undrafted in the 2005 NHL draft. As was previously reported on FullTilt, the Rangers will be saving just under $3 million next season but will have a cap hit of $3.61 million in the 2019 and 2020 seasons.

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The move was one that had been floating around on the Rangers blogs for a good part of this past season. Girardi was one of the most well-liked players in recent Rangers history. He was a hard working and dedicated teammate, who always did the dirty work as a tireless shot blocker. Girardi was named an alternate captain for most of his final six seasons on Broadway and was an NHL All-Star back in 2012.

Now what?

What does this mean for the Rangers moving forward? In the immediate future, it leaves an extra spot on defense for Jeff Gorton to protect. Perhaps the Rangers can re-sign Brendan Smith before the expansion draft. Perhaps they will sign Kevin Shattenkirk with the additional cap room. One thing is for sure; the Rangers are losing one of their more dependable players this offseason.

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