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Expectations for the 2020-2021 New York Rangers: Part 1 Goaltenders

By Jason Katinas

NEW YORK, NY - JANUARY 09: New York Rangers Goalie Henrik Lundqvist (30) congratulates New York Rangers Goalie Igor Shesterkin (31) following the National Hockey League game between the New Jersey Devils and the New York Rangers on January 9, 2020 at Madison Square Garden in New York, NY. (Photo by Joshua Sarner/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY - JANUARY 09: New York Rangers Goalie Henrik Lundqvist (30) congratulates New York Rangers Goalie Igor Shesterkin (31) following the National Hockey League game between the New Jersey Devils and the New York Rangers on January 9, 2020 at Madison Square Garden in New York, NY. (Photo by Joshua Sarner/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /
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New York Rangers salute their fans. Mandatory Credit: Adam Hunger-USA TODAY Sports /

What should New York Rangers fans expect from the team this upcoming season?

New York sports fans are a fickle bunch and New York Rangers fans may be even more so. Aside from the New York Yankees and their 27 World Series Championships, no New York based team has a winning pedigree. The New York Mets have won twice and not since 1986. in the NFL, the New York Jets have won the Superbowl once (1969) and the New York Giants four times, the last nine years ago. in the NBA, the Knicks have two championships, with none since 1973.

In the NHL, The Islanders had a dynasty in the early 1980’s, winning 19 straight playoff series and four Stanley Cups. They have been relatively irrelevant since. Our beloved New York Rangers have also hoisted the Stanley Cup four times, but only twice in the last 80 years. Part of the reason for the lack of serious success among the New York sports teams is that it is said to be impossible to rebuild in New York. The New York Rangers, since February 2018 have been proving to be the exception to that rule.

However, moving into just the third year of the rebuild, the fan base is simultaneously excited about the future and impatient about the present. Across the web, including here at Blue Line Station, fans have been on board with the rebuild as the team has traded away its stars for future assets. Yet, many of those same fans wanted the team to do more to improve itself during the current off-season.

While each trade rumor and free agent signing opportunity are fun discussions, the reality is that the team has already improved itself by staying the course. The rebuild has been about patience and not jumping at quick fix opportunities. Jeff Gorton, John Davidson and the rest of the Rangers management team has built a strong and deep core of young and exciting talent, but for the most part, they are for the very near future, not the here and now.

In just three seasons, the Rangers are nearly ready to move out from their rebuild mantra and dive head long towards serious contention for Lord Stanley’s Cup. That leaves this season as a season in flux. After retaining Chris Kreider in February, the team indicated that it had moved past the full on rebuild mode, but they are not yet ready to contend. So, what should we expect from the 2020-21 version of the New York Rangers?

In the first of a four part series, we will take the fan goggles off and review each player, by position, with realistic expectations. We will then review the team as a whole as it compares to last season and their playoff hopes for the upcoming season. We will work our way up the ice by starting with the position that has been the backbone of the Rangers for the past 15 years, goaltending.

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