The New York Rangers have signed winger Alex Belzile to a two-year contract, according to Renaud Lavoie.
Belzile was an unrestricted free agent after the conclusion of his one-year, $750,000 contract that he signed with the Montreal Canadiens. His new contract will reportedly be a one-way contract for one season and a two-way contract for the other. There is currently no confirmation on the salary.
Belzile is coming off a bit of a breakout season in the NHL, at the very least establishing himself as an NHLer with 6 goals, 8 assists, and 14 points in 31 games. It’s a big improvement on his previous career totals, as he had played just 13 regular season games and six playoff games, with an assist in both the regular season and the playoffs. He also played 31 games for the Laval Rocket in the AHL, with 14 goals, 12 assists, and 26 points in 31 games.
Belzile was an undrafted free agent, signing a pro contract with the Gwinnett Gladiators in the ECHL in 2012-13 after concluding his time in the QMJHL. He then signed a professional try-out with the Hamilton Bulldogs in the AHL, and played out an AHL career until 2019 when he finally signed his first NHL contract with the Canadiens, who he’s now played parts of four seasons with them.
Belzile is a much smaller move for the Rangers, but they’ve made a few moves already on the first day of free agency, signing Blake Wheeler, Jonathan Quick, and Tyler Pitlick as well. They still have about $9.35 million in cap space with K’Andre Miller and Alexis Lafreniere as the only restricted free agents they need to re-sign.
The Rangers are looking to rebound from a season that was a slight step back, as they finished third in the Metropolitan Division with a 47-22-13 record. They didn’t go as far in the playoffs as they would have liked despite loading up at the trade deadline, losing in seven games in the first round to the New Jersey Devils.
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