Through three weeks of the 2018-2019 season, there have not been many bright spots for the New York Rangers. One of the few has been Mika Zibanejad’s hot start.
Whenever a team embarks on a rebuild, it is announcing to the world that it has no interest in competing for the near future. Or if you’re the Buffalo Sabres, ever. But, in the case of the New York Rangers, the decision was made at a time in which there was still a workable core to build around. One of the key components for the team is still forward Mika Zibanejad.
While not originally a Rangers’ draft pick, the Swede is slowly proving himself as a building block for the future. The team acquired him in a swap with the Ottawa Senators for Derick Brassard, a deal that looks better every single day.
In his first two years with New York, Zibanejad has distinguished himself as the Rangers best all-around forward. While there was an argument for either Rick Nash or Derek Stepan in year’s past, it’s clear from the team’s dependence on Zibanejad that there is an understanding there that didn’t exist for the other two.
The center plays at even strength, on the power play and the penalty kill, something the other two didn’t do too often. In addition, Zibanejad has done this and is only 25 years old which is typically the first year of prime production in the NHL. While the injury bug has claimed 36 of 164 possible games in two years from the center, he was producing well in both years before missing time.
The sore spot for the Rangers as an organization this past decade was a lack of star power outside of Henrik Lundqvist. Is Zibanejad a star waiting to explode?
Why Zibanejad is elite
From a pure building block perspective, there will always be a need for a forward in their early 20s that’s capable of producing at .6 points per game average. If Zibanejad could just manage to stay healthy for the entirety of a season, this would chart out to 49.2, a respectable figure considering the struggles of the team around him.
It’s worth mentioning that through 11 games this season Zibanejad is averaging .8 points per game, the highest figure of his entire career. If the Rangers can get its power play going and be more effective, that number is likely to climb as the center is the designated shooter on the man advantage and creates ample scoring chances.
A center that can play all three phases in any zone with any linemates and still create offensive production is what a team needs from it’s best players. In terms of forwards on the team right now, it’s Zibanejad and everyone else with how well he’s played early on. He’s done this while only shooting 10.9 percent, which is .5 percent lower than his career average.
All of the raw talent is there for Zibanejad to be the Rangers’ best player even when the team is good again. However, it’s a matter of the forward putting it all together over the course of an entire season.
Why he’s got work to do
The biggest issue for Zibanejad in his time with the Rangers has been finding a consistency for long stretches. Of course, in short spurts, he looks like a game-breaking talent with a laser of a shot that can be the difference on any given night. However, there are just too many stretches where Zibanejad goes cold in a way that an elite player doesn’t.
In addition to not being consistent, there needs to be a jump in Zibanejad’s production to be truly considered elite. In a vacuum, the forward’s numbers don’t hold up to scrutiny because he’s a big fish in a small pond.
On a bad team, the best player is going to generate points by default, the best players produce nearly ten to 20 more points per season than Zibanejad’s career high of 51 in 2015-2016 with the Senators. There is plenty of room for the forward to take that next step up in his production.
Compared to the other centers in his draft class like Mark Scheifele, Jonathan Huberdeau and Sean Couturier, Zibanejad has yet to have that big breakout offensive season.
As the forward enters the first year of his prime, the hope is that he can make that next step to being truly elite as opposed to a really good player on a bad team.