New York Rangers: Bold Predictions for the Season

After a long offseason, New York Rangers hockey is finally back. With that in mind, it is now time to unleash some bold predictions for the season.

Coming into the year, there are so many different storylines for the New York Rangers. From 8 different players in the opening night lineup than their last game to two rookie forwards attempting to take top six roles. You got Brady Skjei and Adam Clendening filling out the bottom defensive pairing (until Klein gets back). You also have a potential trade coming for Dylan McIlrath, there is a lot going on in Rangers land.

With all of that going on, there is a lot of uncertainty going into this season. To help clarify what will and what won’t happen this season for the Rangers here are my bold predictions.

Just so we are all on the same page, the definition for my bold predictions is things that are not necessarily expected to happen, but if they did happen, I wouldn’t be surprised.

Mika Zibanejad will lead the team in points

Everything that I have read and now seen about Mika Zibanejad I love. He is a big guy who is as skilled as they come. I’m very intrigued by the preseason he had. I am also very intrigued by the line he is on with Chris Kreider and Pavel Buchnevich. The line is so big, strong, fast, and skilled that it is going to be a nightmare for other defenses to face.

Zibanejad notched 51 points last season, and as he has increased his point total in each season so far in the league, I expect that trend to continue for him, as he scores 60+ points and leads the New York Rangers in points this year.

Chris Kreider breaks out, leads the Rangers in goals

I know many people–including myself–have said for the past few years that “this is the year Kreider breaks out. I know that we’ve been wrong about this before, but I don’t think I’ve ever felt this good about it.

Ryan McDonagh matches his career high in goals and reaches a new career high in points

McDonagh is going to take a more offensive role for the Rangers this year. With the departure of Keith Yandle, McDonagh will need to step up as a point man on the powerplay.

With the added offensive responsibility that he will have and the progress that he made with his shot during the offseason, McDonagh’s ability to get on the scoresheet is incredibly important to the Rangers success. Also, it is worth noting that this is the best offense that McDonagh has played with in his NHL career.

McDonagh scored 14 goals in 2013-2014, and I think with the added offensive opportunity and role that he will have this year he will be able to match it. I think he tops his career high in assists (29) that he also set in 13-14. Watch out for the captain, because what he might do this year could be offensive to his opponents.

Jimmy Vesey notches 13 goals and 20 assists

I think Jimmy Vesey will have a solid rookie year for the Rangers this year, but I also don’t think he can possibly live up to all the expectations the fans have set for him. He is a four-year college guy–at Harvard, nonetheless–and I love that. His body is a lot more matured than other kids coming into the league straight out of college. But just like other college-turned-pro players, there is going to be a bit of a learning curve.

Do I think Vesey will have any trouble adapting to the league? No, but I do think it will take a little bit of time. He is obviously a smart guy if he graduated from Harvard so I’d like to think he can make those adjustments in a reasonable amount of time. I just think with the learning curve and the amount of minutes Alain Vigneault will likely give him, I don’t think Vesey will score much more than 30 points this year.

Henrik Lundqvist has the worst statistical season of his career, but still wins 30 games and leads the Rangers to the playoffs

When March rolls around, Henrik Lundqvist will have turned 35 years old. He is getting up there in age and that is something that Rangers fans should be concerned about.

If the Rangers play Lundqvist 60+ games in he regular season again, Lundqvist will not be able to do it in as productive a way as he has in the past.

Regardless of what some people tell you, Lundqvist isn’t the same as he once was.

While he hasn’t lost a whole step, he has lost a half-step in his game. It also doesn’t help when you have one of the most futile defenses in the NHL in front of you.

I think the Rangers are still going to be a very good team this year, but I think Lundqvist isn’t going to be at his best if his workload is as big as it normally is.

If the Rangers get his start total below 60, then maybe Hank could stay at the top of his game. So this prediction is also a little bit about Antti Raanta too, and not just Lundqvist.

The New York Rangers will finish 3rd in the Metropolitan Division as their offense ranks in the top 5

I think the Capitals and the Penguins will do their thing in the regular season as well, but I think the Rangers will finish just a few points out of second place in the division to finish in the third slot. I think that this forward group is the best the Rangers have had at their disposal in at least a decade. Honestly, I think they may have the deepest forward group in the league.

All four lines team employed on opening night can score, and that is something that I believe opposing defenses will have trouble with. Sometimes, the best defense is a good offense, and the Rangers need to employ that philosophy this year with all the youngsters and washed up veterans on the backend.

Next: The top 4 challenges the Rangers will face this season

Those are my bold predictions, what are yours? You can tell us in the comment section below or by tweeting at us @BlueLineStation or my personal account, @JaW1224. Your answer may find it’s way in a future article.

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