With an arbitration hearing looming Thursday, Brandon Dubinsky of Anchorage and the New York Rangers avoided that potentially contentious showdown by agreeing to a deal that doubles the emerging forward's salary and furnishes both sides security.
Dubinsky, 25, agreed to a four-year, $16.8 million contract that will pay him $3.75 million in each of the next two NHL seasons and $4.65 million in each of the following two seasons. Dubinsky last season made $2 million in the second year of a 2-year, $3.7 million contract.
The parties agreed to the deal in Toronto, where Dubinsky and his agent, Kurt Overhardt traveled in anticipation of a scheduled arbitration hearing. Overhardt and Rangers assistant general manager Jeff Gorton negotiated all day Wednesday and into the night.
Dubinsky, who has played four full seasons for the Rangers and led the club in goals, assists and points last season, said he was relieved to reach a deal with the club he grew up cheering from afar.
"The amount of money I'm getting and the number of years are both great,'' Dubinsky said by cell phone. "I don't have to worry about money or a contract. I can just worry about hockey.
"It gives me a little bit of stability. It gives me an opportunity to focus on just playing and helping the Rangers.''
Dubinsky's new contract is the second-most lucrative deal signed by an Alaska hockey player. Montreal Canadiens center Scott Gomez, Dubinsky's former teammate in New York, is entering the fifth year of a seven-year, $51.5 million contract he began with the Rangers.
The $3.65 million Dubinsky will make in the upcoming season will be the third-highest NHL salary among Alaska players. Gomez is ticketed to make $7.5 million and Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Matt Carle is set to earn $3.8 million in the final year of a four-year, $13.75 million contract he originally signed with the San Jose Sharks.
Dubinsky entered the offseason as an unrestricted free agent, just as he was in 2009, when he held out for about a week of training camp before agreeing to terms with the Rangers.
An arbitration hearing, in which both parties submit a salary figure, can result in hurt feelings. Teams have occasionally emphasized a player's weaknesses -- that's a tactic designed to drive down the amount of the arbitration award -- and thus splintered the relationship between player and organization.
This time around, even though negotiations went nearly up to the deadline for arbitration, Dubinsky said he believed a deal would be struck.
"I was always confident something was going to get done,'' Dubinsky said. "We had to go to Toronto to do it. That's just the way negotiations go sometimes.
"At the end of the day, I was confident I was going to be a Ranger for a long time.''
The Rangers drafted Dubinsky in the second round, 60th overall, in 2004 while he was playing for the Portland Winter Hawks of the Western Hockey League. He played most of his first season as a pro in the American Hockey League, one step below the NHL, but was also promoted for six NHL games. As a second-year pro, he made the Rangers full-time.
Dubinsky has raised his point total in each of his four full NHL seasons and last season racked 24-30--54 totals in 77 games, with 100 penalty minutes, a minus-3 rating and a face-off winning percentage of 52.5 percent. That marked his second straight season of 20 or more goals.
He plays in all situations -- witness his four power-play goals and two short-handed strikes last season, when he averaged 20 minutes, 13 seconds of ice time per game.
Dubinsky, a 6-foot-1, 210-pounder, also plays a physical game, delivering hits and occasionally dropping the gloves to fight.
He said he understands a lucrative new contract heading into his sixth season as a pro will generate expectations.
"I've shown I can handle it,'' he said. "I just want to continue to get better.''
Dubinsky began his NHL career as a center, but primarily played left wing last season, though he still took more than 11 face-offs per game, the second-most on the team, and produced the best face-off winning percentage of any Ranger who was a regular in the circle. At wing, the Rangers see Dubinsky as a straight-ahead power forward.
Now, with a contract in hand, Dubinsky can focus on his offseason training and, after shuttling back home to New York from Toronto, catch up on some sleep.
"It's been hectic to say the least,'' Dubinsky said.
Wallace signs with Islanders
After five seasons in the Pittsburgh Penguins organization, winger Tim Wallace of Anchorage is changing sweaters.
Wallace, 26, has agreed to a one-year, two-way contract with the New York Islanders, the NHL team announced Thursday.
Wallace played 24 NHL games for the Penguins and has spent most of his pro career with their AHL farm team, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, commonly called the Baby Pens.
According to capgeek.com, Wallace will make $105,000 at the AHL level and $700,000 at the NHL level. That's a nice salary bump over last season, when he made an $85,000 AHL salary and a pro-rated $500,000 when he was up in the NHL for seven games.
With the Islanders, a young team trying to get the once-powerful franchise back to respectability, Wallace probably has a better chance of ascending to the world's best league again.
"They were a team that seemed really interested in me,'' Wallace said of the Islanders. "Talking to me, they stressed opportunity. That was definitely part of my decision.''
If he's in the AHL, he'll play for New York's AHL affiliate, the Bridgeport Sound Tigers, who have a new head coach in former Alaska Aces bench boss Brent Thompson. Wallace said he met Thompson for the first time Thursday at Eagleglen Golf Course in Gomez's golf tournament, a fundraiser for Gomez's foundation.
Wallace leaves Wilkes-Barre/Scranton third all-time in franchise goals (75) and games played (304), and ninth in points (137). The 6-foot-1, 200-pounder, who turns 27 next month, is a physical forward who occasionally fights, but he's also a two-time 20-goal scorer in the AHL and provides experience and leadership.
Last season, Wallace racked 20-17--37 totals in 62 games. Two seasons ago, he furnished 27-14--41 totals in 78 games.
"I had a lot of fun in the Pittsburgh organization, and I definitely learned a lot,'' Wallace said. "It's a business, so you do what you have to do.''
Find Doyle Woody's blog at adn.com/hockeyblog or call him at 257-4335.
By DOYLE WOODY
dwoody@adn.com