The negotiations may be progressing slowly, but fans of the New York Rangers will be happy to hear that they're moving along nonetheless.
The New York Post is reporting that there have been constructive talks between Marc Staal's agent, Paul Krepelka, and Rangers management - talks that prompted Krepelka to note that "we've made some progress" - but that an agreement on an extension is still a ways away from being reached.
"I'm not giving daily updates, not getting into 'close or not close,' '' Krepelka said. "The tenor of the talks has been good, so we'll keep going and keep working on it. There's certainly no deadline on our part for getting this done.
"If this becomes a distraction at any time for Marc, then we'd have to take another look at it. But it's all been positive to this point."
Staal is an alternate captain who has manned the blueline for the Rangers since 2007. He comes from an NHL family, as his brothers Eric, Jordan and Jared all play for or within the Carolina Hurricanes organization.
Staal turns 28 in January and is reportedly seeking a deal that will pay him an average of $6 million over six or seven years, while the Rangers are offering something in the neighborhood of six years and $5.5 million.
Surely hindering negotiations is Staal's complicated injury history, as he has suffered "significant injuries in each of the last three seasons, including a pair of concussions". In any sport, but especially in one such as hockey, which is built on contact and played on a hard surface, concussions can often derail and eventually destroy a career.
Staal has intimated a preference to remain in New York, but he'd almost assuredly be leaving money on the table to do so. Were he to avoid serious injury and make it to unrestricted free agent status, there would undoubtedly be a number of teams bidding for his services.
There would be no guarantee, however, that any of those teams would be a contender.
