NY Rangers hockey begins September 26 against the Islanders

The NY Rangers start their preseason schedule against the NY Islanders on September 26. After losing to the Tampa Bay Lightning in the Eastern Conference Finals last season, the Rangers look to rebound. Here is a look at their upcoming schedule.

NY Rangers Preseason

The preseason is the perfect time for player placement. The coach plays around with the lines by switching players around, trying to find a perfect fit in time for the season. The reason for this is because he/she wants to make sure the players are being utilized in the best possible way for a better chance of winning games, which can lead to a trip to the playoffs.

The Rangers’ first game is against the Islanders at Madison Square Garden. It is always fun to watch cross-town rivals, as well as division rivals face each other. The Rangers/Islanders games are always exciting and this won’t be any different. The Rangers also end their preseason against the Islanders on October 8, but this game will be at UBS Arena.

NY Rangers 2022-2023 Regular Season

The Rangers will be facing off at home against the Lightning for the first game in the regular season. The funny part of it is they faced them three times last year and beat them each time. It all sounds great, but the playoffs are a different animal and very unpredictable.

With that said, anything can happen and any stats that took place in the regular season has to be wiped out once the playoffs start. There needs to be a clean slate with the playoffs because anything is possible as everyone saw with the Eastern Conference Finals.

Going back to the upcoming season, the Rangers will start off playing 10 games in October, five home and five away. Two games will be against division rivals with the first being against the Columbus Blue Jackets on October 23 at home and the other against the Islanders on October 26.

The Rangers will end their season at home on April 13 against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Hopefully, the Rangers will have a spot in the playoffs.

NY Rangers New Players

There are many new faces on the Rangers this year, such as Turner Elson, Ryan Carpenter, Vincent Trocheck, Louis Domingue, and Jaroslav Halak just to name a few. Elson only played three total NHL games with the Calgary Flames and Detroit Red Wings. He spent a lot of his playing career in the AHL. In these three games, he has one assist.

Carpenter came from the Flames. His career stats are 308 total NHL games, where he accumulated 69 points. Other teams he played for were the San Jose Sharks, Vegas Golden Knights, and the Chicago Blackhawks.

Trocheck played started his NHL career with the Florida Panthers and ended up with the Carolina Hurricanes, which is where the Rangers got him from. He has played in 555 career NHL games with a total of 378 points.

Domingue was acquired from the Pittsburgh Penguins. In 142 career NHL games, he is 59-60 with a 3.04 goals-against-average (GAA) and save percentage (SV%) of .905. Other teams he played for were the Arizona Coyotes, Lightning, Vancouver Canucks, and the Flames.

Jaroslav Halak came from the Canucks. He has played in 556 total NHL games in his career with a record of 285-180, a 2.49 GAA, and a .916 SV%. Other teams he played for were the Montreal Canadiens, St. Louis Blues, Washington Capitals, Islanders, and the Boston Bruins.

Other players have come and gone. Some of those include Ryan Strome, Alexandar Georgiev, Kevin Rooney, Justin Braun, Frank Vatrano, Patrik Nemeth, and Andrew Copp. Many of these players have had an impact on the Rangers. With them gone and several new players added to their roster, it will be interesting to see what happens.

NY Rangers Final Thoughts

The Rangers were not expected to be a contender last season but made it all the way to the Eastern Conference Finals. That says a lot about this organization with its determination and resiliency.

With the “No quit in New York” mantra, they lived up to that all season long and into the playoffs. I believe they can pull a repeat of last season, but I am hoping they do better, like bringing home the Cup. I am looking forward to this season, as I am every year because hockey is the greatest sport. What are you looking forward to the most for the upcoming season? Please share your thoughts.