Last week at the Rangers' prospect camp, newly-acquired Christopher Higgins, taking a tour of the Madison Square Garden Training Center, said he did not foresee any problems working out a contract with his new team despite being a restricted free agent.
Sure enough, this afternoon, the Rangers announced they had signed Higgins. Terms of the deal are not yet available.
(UPDATE: Have confirmed Higgins contract is a one-year deal worth $2.25 million.)
"I like the way (John) Tortorella coaches them, I think it will fit me well," Higgins said last week. "I have an aggressive style. Hopefully, I'll be able to find a role."
Higgins was later asked about the Rangers signing Marian Gaborik.
"He's a special player, an elite talent in this league," Higgins said. "He's battled some injuries, like myself. I'm sure he feels he's got something to prove, like myself. (GM) Glen (Sather) sees me as a guy who can put pucks in the net. I'm a worker before I'm a scorer. I've played a lot of power play but a lot more penalty kill than power play."
Rangers press release is below.
New York Rangers President and General Manager Glen Sather announced today that the club has agreed to terms with restricted free agent forward Christopher Higgins.
Higgins, 26, was acquired by the Rangers, along with Ryan McDonagh and Pavel Valentenko, from the Montreal Canadiens, in exchange for Scott Gomez, Tom Pyatt and Mike Busto on June 30. He has skated in 282 regular season contests with Montreal, recording 84 goals and 67 assists for 151 points, along with 96 penalty minutes. The 6-0, 205-pounder has eclipsed the 20-goal mark three times. In 2007-08, he established career-highs in games played (82), goals (27), assists (25), points (52), power play goals (12), game-winning goals (five), and shots (241). He led Montreal in shots, tied for second on the team in power play goals and game-winning goals, and ranked third in goals. He was also one of only three Canadiens to skate in all 82 games during the season. Higgins registered 11 points (six goals and five assists) in the first 13 games of the season, and went on to surpass the 20-goal plateau for the third straight year.
Higgins appeared in 57 games with the Montreal Canadiens this past season, registering 12 goals and 11 assists for 23 points, along with 22 penalty minutes. He tied for second on the team with two shorthanded goals, and placed sixth on the club with 151 shots despite missing 25 games due to injury. In addition, he led the Canadiens in goals (five) and shots (40) during the month of November. He tallied his first career hat trick on November 11 vs. Ottawa to cap off a season-high, four-game scoring streak that began on November 1 at the New York Islanders, registering six points (four goals and two assists) over the span.
As a rookie in 2005-06, he led Montreal with three shorthanded goals. In addition, Higgins has registered six goals and five assists for 11 points in 22 career postseason contests with Montreal.
The Smithtown, New York native was originally Montreal’s first round choice, 14th overall, in the 2002 NHL Entry Draft.
I am glad they got one deal done-now it's on to Cally and Dubi. I think that's a fair amount to pay Higgy. Does he play PP?
Posted by: Keith | July 06, 2009 at 06:18 PM
Yeah he plays PP, probably 2nd unit. Very good around the net, especially rebounds. Good hand-eye. He had 8 and 12 in 2007 and 2008, respectively. He will be a good replacement for Naslund, especially since Higgins is more aggressive.
Posted by: Chris | July 06, 2009 at 06:31 PM
I think they should have rather signed him for 2 or 3 years or for only 2 million.
Posted by: bob | July 06, 2009 at 09:27 PM
Wow-yeah Bob-totally missed that. I just worry about the cap and all. But I guess it makes sense-he could come out and score 12 goals all year and 30 points. Especially on this team-freakin offensively challenged bunch that they are since Jags left
Posted by: Keith | July 06, 2009 at 10:25 PM
greg moore 2 way deal with isles
Posted by: LI Joe | July 06, 2009 at 11:04 PM
i really wanted them to lock down higgins for at least 3 years =/
Posted by: brian | July 06, 2009 at 11:40 PM
maybe higgins and his agent only wanted 1 yr to test free agency. takes 2 to make a deal. also with cap coming down 10% in a yr as many predict the rangers simply can't afford everyone. they need to make room for increases for cally, staal and dubi.
it was a very smart move on the rangers part and on higgins part to sign a 1 yr deal
Posted by: LI Joe | July 07, 2009 at 10:05 AM