At first glance, it would appear that offering a contract extension to the best free-agent signing in New York Rangers history when Artemi Panarin becomes eligible for one July 1 would be a no-brainer for general manager Chris Drury.
Panarin isn't just the best free-agent pickup ever for the Rangers – he's among the best in the history of New York City sports. Panarin's been a prolific producer, with 550 points in 430 games, including a 120-point season in 2023-24 that was second most in franchise history . Only three NHL players — Connor McDavid (710), Leon Draisaitl (644) and Nathan MacKinnon (613) — have more points than Panarin since he joined the Rangers.
And yet, with one season remaining on the seven-year, $81.5 million contract that has proven to be a virtual bargain, it feels as if Panarin's wildly successful time on Broadway shouldn't, and perhaps won't, continue beyond the 2025-26 season.
There are a number of reasons for that, all of which Drury and the front office might ignore if they're determined to keep the relationship going into Panarin's mid- to late-30s. None of those reasons are an assumed inability by Panarin to keep producing at a high level after next season.
They're legitimate reasons nonetheless, and might lead to the end of what's appeared a perfect fit since the native of Korkino, Russia put pen to paper July 1, 2019, and chose the big stage that has allowed him to reach a new level of his career.
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Panarin has averaged nearly 1.3 points per game in a Rangers sweater during the regular season after leading them with 89 points in 80 games this past season. His dynamic style, however, has been exposed as less-than compatible with the grind of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Though he's hardly been bad in the postseason, Panarin has managed 35 points in 46 playoff games with New York, and 69 points in 82 career playoff contests. Panarin has never been able to leverage his all-world talents into a Mikko Rantanen-like playoff performance – or come close to his career regular-season average of 1.2 points per game.
While it would be ridiculous to solely blame him for the Rangers falling short in the Eastern Conference Final in 2022 and 2024, Panarin is their only bonafide superstar up front, so his declining production when it matters most is noteworthy. Ordinary performances in those series – he had two goals and three assists in a six-game loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2022, and a goal and three assists in a six-game defeat to the Florida Panthers last year – played as big a role as anything that prevented the Rangers getting over the championship hump.
In fact, last spring Panarin scored one goal in his final nine playoff games. The Rangers lost their mojo after a blazing start to the postseason and dropped six of those nine games against the Carolina Hurricanes and Panthers, falling short of the Stanley Cup Final yet again.
At age 33, the notion that Panarin will suddenly figure out how to dominate in the playoffs in his 11th season seems like folly.
Panarin is a premier offensive star in the NHL. But does he have what it takes to be a champion? Would the Rangers be better off hedging their bets and saving Panarin's massive cap space for when McDavid, Jack Eichel , Kirill Kiprizov, Kyle Connor , Martin Necas and Adrian Kempe can become unrestricted free agents next summer?
Perhaps each of those younger stars re-ups with his current team. The possibility of landing at least one of them, though? Enticing is too mild a word to describe it, what with Panarin's $11.6 million salary-cap hit set to expire in extraordinarily timely fashion.
Drury has been working to reshape the roster since the start of this past season, having decided after the conference final loss to the Panthers that the Rangers as constructed had gone as far as they could.
It seems illogical that he'd effectively give up on the chance to land an in-his-prime franchise player that's several years younger than Panarin a year before he has to. Or pass on using Panarin's cap space on several players who might be less talented but bring a championship pedigree.
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Last month, The Athletic reported that Panarin and Madison Square Garden Sports, which owns the Rangers, paid settlements to a former employee after she alleged Panarin sexually assaulted her during a road trip in December 2023. The NHL confirmed that it conducted an investigation into the matter and considered it "closed." There is no record of the woman reporting the incident to law enforcement.
The report followed another incident involving Panarin in February 2021, when a Russian newspaper printed claims that the left wing was involved in a physical altercation with a woman in Latvia a decade prior. Panarin took a two-week absence from the Rangers, who denied the allegations and pointed out the strong political implications surrounding the situation, with the claims made by Panarin's former KHL coach Andrei Nazarov. Panarin spoke out numerous times against Russian President Vladimir Putin, while Nazarov is a strong supporter of Putin and criticized Panarin for his words.
While this latest occurrence doesn't validate the first one, and guilt was not established in either case, it does create a disturbing pattern involving inappropriate and potentially criminal conduct. The Rangers might want to avoid the mere possibility of another shoe dropping if they extend Panarin for three or four years.
As much as Panarin has done for the Rangers, serving as a linchpin in their rebuild that began in 2018, the relationship might be close to running its course.
The Rangers future, though, beckons. It's going to be characterized by a retooled roster, if not a rebuilt one. The chances of Panarin being a part of it feel slimmer than anyone might have imagined just a year or so ago.
