The New York Rangers re-signed free agent forward Cristoval Nieves to a one-year, two-way contract worth $708,500 at the NHL level and $70,000 in the AHL. He is scheduled to be a restricted free agent again next summer. Nieves opted to accept the qualifying offer that he received from the Rangers in June.
#Rangers have signed pending RFA forward Cristoval Nieves
1 year / 2-way dealNHL: $708,750 (105%)
Minor: 70,000Nieves accepted his Qualifying Offer given him by the Rangers, which was set to expire at 5:00pm EST on July 15th.https://t.co/Wm3aiETPC6 pic.twitter.com/nIVhJu9OQK
— CapFriendly (@CapFriendly) July 13, 2018
Cristoval Nieves Signs With the New York Rangers
The 24-year-old Nieves has spent his entire three-year pro career with the New York Rangers organization after spending four years at the University of Michigan. Over two-years with NHL time, Nieves has put up one goal and eight assists for nine career points in 29 NHL games. He was originally drafted in the second round, 59th overall of the 2012 NHL Entry Draft by the Rangers.
Last season he scored one goal and eight assists for nine points in 28 games. He also added 12 minutes in penalties. His possession numbers were 44.8 percent Corsi and a relative Corsi of -2.2. He also added eight goals and 13 assists for 21 points in 40 games for the AHL’s Hartford Wolfpack.
What This Means for the Future
At 24 years old, Nieves is looking to finally find a permanent place in an NHL line-up. With the Rangers opting to go with youth and begin a rebuild, he was given a considerable look at the NHL level last season. He will be given a chance to make the team in training camp. Nieves will likely never be a big scorer but can use his size, physicality, and defensive presence to be a contributor in the bottom six.
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