In recapping the Rangers offseason, the Just Blueshirts blog will one by one go over each and every one of the 2011-12 New York Rangers whose contracts will have to be renewed going into the 2012-13 season.
Today I ask "stay or go" regarding the future of defenseman Michael Del Zotto.
2011-12 Regular season & playoffs statistics- 97 GP 12 goals 39 assists 51 points
Contract History- Signed 3 year, $2,625,000 entry level contract in 2009
Cap hit- $1,087,500 (RFA) (capgeek.com)
Drafted 1st round 20th overall by Rangers in 2008
Season Review:
Following a miserable sophomore season in 2010-11 in which Del Zotto was a frequent guest in Torts' dog house, struggled with his defensive responsibilities and the best part of his game, his offense on the power play fell off the map. Bigger expectations were expected out of him coming into this season and he did not disappoint. The 2011-12 season was by far his best season as a young pro. Del Zotto was among the league leaders in +/- for a majority of the season and was showing positive strides as far as his defense was concerned. Del Zotto was no longer the defensive liability that he was in his first two seasons as a pro and was thrust into a top 4 role when Mike Sauer was in and out of the lineup with injury issues. Torts even trusted him on the Rangers PK, a move that would have been ridiculed for the past 2 seasons prior.
Stay or Go:
This will be very interesting as to which direction Tortorella and Sather are going to go with the young defenseman. With the names that are currently out there on the market, coaches and ownership will have a tough decision on their hands. The decision is mainly dependent on how coaches feel where Tim Erixon and Dylan McIlrath's development will be going into next season as well as whether Sather decides to go after McDonagh and Stepan's former teammate at Wisconsin in Justin Schultz. Schultz, a defenseman, has the offensive upside that Del Zotto has, but Schultz has a much better defensive upside as well. Schultz will likely come cheaper than Del Zotto will and with the uncertainty regarding the CBA going into next year might be attractive to the Rangers' financially. Also have to wonder if Sather goes after a big, expensive name on the open market like Shea Weber or Ryan Suter. As of this post, I have Del Zotto at a 75% chance of a return next season although I expect that number to fluctuate violently as July 1 gets closer.
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