New York Rangers forward, Vladislav Namestnikov, re-signed with the team that traded for him at last year’s NHL trade deadline. His new deal is worth $8 million over the span of two-years for $4 million AAV per season. He entered this summer as a restricted free agent.
Post has learned that Rangers are re-signing Namestnikov. Deal is believed two years at around $4M per. They are not signing him to trade him.
— Larry Brooks (@NYP_Brooksie) July 1, 2018
New York Rangers Re-Sign Forward Vladislav Namestnikov
A 2011 first-round pick by the Tampa Bay Lightning, Vlad Namestnikov played 263 regular season games and 29 Stanley Cup Playoff games with the Bolts. Between 2012 and 2015 he shared time in the NHL as well as the AHL with the Lightning affiliate, the Syracuse Crunch.
Beginning in the 2015-16 season, the Russian native became a roster mainstay in Tampa. Last season, he spent most of his time with the Lightning on the first line alongside superstars Steven Stamkos and Nikita Kucherov when he posted a career-high 22 goals and 26 assists, totalling 48 points. In his entire tenure with the Lightning, Namestnikov racked up 53 goals and 70 assists for 123 career points. His possession metrics were impressive in his final 62 games as a Bolt. With a 60.1 percent Corsi-For and +12.2 relative Corsi, he was thriving on offence.
At the trade deadline during his breakout season, he was packaged into a blockbuster deal to the New York Rangers. Namestnikov became a Blueshirt along with picks and prospects. In return, the Lightning acquired Rangers captain Ryan McDonagh and forward J.T. Miller. His 19 subsequent games were underwhelming, only scoring two goals and two assists. His Corsi-for was 50.9 percent and a relative Corsi of +8.5. Despite this disappointing stint in New York, general manager Jeff Gorton brought Namestnikov back for _ years to try and return to the promising player he was in Tampa. Meanwhile, he’ll look to bounce back under a revised system with the new head coach, David Quinn.
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