The Rangers paid a premium, all right, but that’s the cost of doing business in the premium aisle of the NHL’s free-agent market. Artemi Panarin is coming to Broadway after all, and though the Russian winger left what is believed a rather substantial sum of money on the table by rejecting more lucrative offers from the Blue Jackets and Islanders, he will rake in $81.494 million over seven years ($11.642 million cap hit).
As Saul Goodman might say, that’s a lot of bread, man.
The Blueshirts are better with Panarin than without him. Of that there is no question.