Most National Hockey League fans don't count the offseason as having started until the conclusion of the 2024-25 Stanley Cup Playoffs in June.
This is not the case for New York Rangers fans. For the Blueshirt faithful, their hockey season wraps up following Thursday's play against the Tampa Bay Lightning. And while it's earlier than most teams, it provides fans with a break from the many, many ups and downs this season brought them.
Here's three aspects of the offseason the New York Rangers fans should be looking forward to the most.
3. Roster Moves
The 2024-25 season has seen many, many moves for the Rangers — including but not limited to the re-acquiring of J.T. Miller from Vancouver and sending Kaapo Kakko to the Seattle Kraken. After having one of their worst seasons in the past decade, it's only both expected and necessary that more changes to the roster will continue to follow.
Why is this something to look forward to? More talent and younger players only means something new for fans. And something new for fans provides the fanbase with something, or someone, new to root for.
2. Development of Young Players
With the postseason officially out of the question for the Rangers, a lot of young talent has seen more action than normal. For instance, Blueshirt fans have seen the return of 19-year-old Gabe Perreault, more time on ice for Brennan Othmann and 22-year-old Matt Rempe's first multi-point game in his career.
Additionally, AHL regular Matthew Robertson also saw his league debut against the Panthers.
This trend is only expected to continue, After all, Rempe and fellow young studs are often the last players off the ice at practices and are frequently at morning skate. It's expected they will continue with their yearn for development in the offseason.