New York Rangers must lock down Tye Kartye long term now

The New York Rangers should re-sign Tye Kartye to a long term deal.

Tye Kartye is on one of the best bargain contracts in the NHL right now.

Per PuckPedia, his 4-7-11 in 16 games with the Rangers puts him at around $114,000 per point — third lowest in the entire NHL.

As he continues to rack up points, that number will get lower and lower.

His $1.25 million contract while playing second line and PP2 minutes with J.T. Miller has benefited him.

At just 25 years old, Kartye will be an RFA eligible for arbitration.

That at least means he is at less risk of an offer sheet.

Kartye, picked up off waivers in February this year, has 9 goals and 16 assists for 25 points in 40 games.

That is a 51-point pace over an 82-game season and a 52-point pace over the new 84-game season.

Though he does not come with the same draft pedigree as other 50-point scorers his age, he is right up there with Will Cuylle in points pace.

Kartye has been a diamond in the rough and perhaps the best waiver wire pickup in recent memory.

Especially for those of us scarred by the days of top line center Erik Christensen.

Kartye is not only putting up the numbers.

He is elevating captain J.T. Miller's game back to respectability after a disastrous first two-thirds of his 2025-2026 season.

Miller — with 12 points in 16 games — looks revitalized as the 2C.

He even looked like he willingly accepted shifting to PP2.

He has been vocal about keeping Kartye on his line as well.

That hopefully means he will accept perhaps shifting to 3C if and when the Rangers ever acquire a young center with offensive potential.

Context matters here.

Kartye was on the fourth line with significant defensive zone starts prior to moving up to play with Miller.

That fourth line was buried with close to 75% OZ/NZ starts.

This will skew splits.

Cap hits aside for a moment, the Rangers go as Miller goes.

It seems odd that the Rangers should re-sign Tye Kartye long term because of his impact on Miller, but it does make some sense.

This is not the same as signing Barclay Goodrow to a six-year contract.

Kartye is showing he is proving people — including myself — wrong with how he is playing.

He has earned a new contract.

It is clear he fits with one of the Rangers' most important players.

He fits within the system.

Quite frankly, he plays the game the right way.

The Rangers should re-sign Tye Kartye long term.

When a player on a $1.25 million cap hit produces at a 51-point pace over 82 games, the math forces a decision.

NHL contracts for players of similar production typically start around $3.5 million to $4.5 million per year on a multi-year deal.

Arbitration rights mean Kartye cannot simply be lowballed.

An arbitrator would look at his point totals, his ice time, his role on the power play and the comparables around the league.

That process could land him a one-year award that pushes his salary into the $3 million range, making him a restricted free agent again next summer with even more leverage.

The safer play for general manager Chris Drury is to offer term now.

A five-year or six-year deal at a cap hit of $3 million to $3.5 million would buy out Kartye's prime years and give the Rangers cost certainty on a second-line winger.

For a team that has been squeezed by the salary cap for years — and will need to manage raises for Alexis Lafreniere and K'Andre Miller — locking in a productive forward at a below-market rate is the kind of move that sustains a window.

The Rangers have 17 points through 16 games and sit in the middle of the Metropolitan Division.