Rangers strike deal with young defenseman McDonagh

Ryan McDonagh didn't want anyone to know it, but he had very few doubts about wanting to turn pro before last week's Rangers prospect camp.

As it turned out, he showed the team exactly what it wanted to see from the 21-year-old defenseman, whose poker face throughout the week when it came to questions on signing meshed well with his cool on-ice demeanor and steady play.

So Tuesday, McDonagh and the Rangers made it official, with the former Wisconsin standout signing a three-year, entry-level contract, worth roughly $2.4 million - the same deal his Wisconsin teammate, forward Derek Stepan, signed late last week with the Rangers.

"I got traded [to the Rangers] last year during the prospect camp, so I didn't have a chance to get in there last year and get used to everything," McDonagh told Newsday last night. "I really just wanted to come in and meet the staff, try to start getting comfortable around everyone before I made a final decision."

McDonagh was the 12th overall pick in the 2007 draft by the Canadiens and attended two of Montreal's camps before the trade last June 30 that sent Scott Gomez to the Canadiens for Chris Higgins and the rights to McDonagh. Higgins couldn't find the net in his 55 games in New York and was dealt to Calgary. So McDonagh is the only return on that deal the Rangers will see.

Glen Sather may look to add a veteran defenseman for depth, but the front office and coaching staff see in McDonagh a player who has a chance to make the team out of training camp and who brings more stability to a very young group. If Wade Redden is the odd man out once camp ends, the defense could be McDonagh (21), Dan Girardi (26), Marc Staal (23), Michael Del Zotto (20) and Matt Gilroy (26) with Michal Rozsival (32).

"All the signs are there that they're building a young core, Mr. Sather has been saying that a lot," McDonagh said. "If I can be a part of it, that's great. There's still a lot of work to do before that happens."

The Rangers still have to get Girardi (who filed for arbitration Monday) and Staal signed to deals which could eat up $6-$7 million of the $7.9 million of cap space they have left. The team can go 10 percent ($5.94 million) over the $59.4-million cap until first roster cuts are made in September, so Sather may not be done shopping.

But the priorities, as Sather and coach John Tortorella have often expressed, are the homegrown young players. The Rangers have added three new players this offseason: enforcer Derek Boogaard, backup goaltender Marty Biron and Swiss forward Mats Zuccarello-Aasen. That reinforces their plan to build from within.