What they need
If the Rangers can get 12 points for every 10 games they play, that’s a 98 point pace over an 82 game season. Since 1995, when the NHL went to an 82-game season, no team that missed the playoffs with as many as 97 points.
With 14 points in their first ten games, they are ahead of the pace they need to reach the magic number.
The other common belief in the NHL is that teams in playoff position by Thanksgiving will make the postseason. Over the last six 82-game seasons, 76% (73 of 96) of teams in playoff position on the holiday made the postseason.
The second ten-game sequence ends on Thanksgiving Eve so we should have an inkling of what the Rangers’ postseason prospects are.
It’s worth noting that in the last 82-game season (2018-19) the Rangers were in a playoff position on Thanksgiving with a 12-8-2 record. They proceeded to win only 20 of their next 60 games and finish in seventh place.
With all of the Met Division games they still have to play, it’s vital for the Ranger to get points against the other teams in the NHL, something that they have done so far. They can keep it going this weekend in Alberta.
Is 12 points too many? Too few? Feel free to make your own projections below. Here is the schedule:
Nov. 5 At Edmonton
Nov. 6 At Calgary
Nov. 8 Florida
Nov. 13 At Columbus
Nov. 14 At New Jersey
Nov. 16 Montreal
Nov. 18 At Toronto
Nov. 20 At Ottawa
Nov. 21 Buffalo
Nov. 24 At Islanders