This season has turned into a disaster for the New York Rangers. While we are only a quarter of the way into the season and while the team only sits one point out of a playoff spot, the fanbase feels hopeless as the team continues its mediocre season. After failing to beat the Blackhawks at home and giving them their first win after eight straight losses, many are wondering what has happened to this team.
Last season, all we could talk about is how this team fought back no matter what. There really was “No Quit” in New York. This season, the team looks like they have quit and have shown no signs of improving.
There could be many factors at play that are impacting this team. The first many would point to is head coach, Gerard Gallant. Fans are calling for Gallant to be fired as they feel this team is not listening to the coach and Gallant is not doing enough to spark this team out of this terrible slump. He keeps his lineups the same and keeps trying to stay positive. What this team needs though is a wake-up call.
Gallant should be calling the team out and he himself should start making some changes to the lineup to try and get this team back on track.
Another reason why the fans feel like this team has lost its “No Quit” attitude is a negative locker room. When the Rangers traded Ryan Reaves, they traded away a massive locker room leader and influence. Losing that kind of personality can really hurt a team’s morale. Not saying that trading Reaves caused these issues as they were around while he was still here, but losing him definitely hurt this team mentally.
There have been rumors that there may be some guys or a guy in the locker room that is a negative influence. If they do make a trade and that trade includes a roster player, it might be a telling sign of what is happening in the locker room.
The lack of fight from this team is also a concern. Aside from the captain, Jacob Trouba, the only players who show any kind of heart are Barclay Goodrow and Ryan Lindgren. These are the only players who are willing to step up to try and change the tempo of the game. The rest of the team just looks on. Even after Trouba’s two fights against the Blackhawks and when he told the team to wake up, nothing changed. They played the same. Something is wrong with the Rangers.
If this trend continues, major changes will be made to the Rangers. This team had high expectations going into the season and seeing how they are playing now, maybe they thought they were better than they were. They thought that since they got to the Conference Final and that they had the best goalie in the league, they were a great team. Right now, they are mediocre at best and have lost the “No Quit” attitude that carried and defined them last season.