New York Rangers: Predicting who will replace Derek Stepan

Lou Venditti-

It’s time for Mika Zibanejad to step up and become the New York Rangers’ number one center. The timing couldn’t be better.

Zibanejad is coming off a successful season, albeit marred by injury. He showed flashes of pure brilliance in the way he handled and let his shots rip all season long. Zibanejad knows the Rangers system and already has chemistry with Chris Kreider, who regularly features on the first line.

It’s almost as if his destiny was to come in and be the first line center when Stepan couldn’t be anymore.

Zibanejad is about to really start the prime of his career, and while he’s young, increasing his workload as the number one center for the Rangers can only make him better from here.