The New York Rangers' difficult 2025-26 season is finally drawing to a close tonight in Tampa, but while the team's playoff hopes have long since vanished, Alexis Lafrenière has a chance to make some personal history. In what has been a year of massive swings, the 24-year-old winger is on the verge of a new career milestone.
The Blueshirts' 2020 No. 1 overall pick needs just one point to tie his career high of 57, and two points to set a new personal record in the season's final 60 minutes, assuming there's no overtime.
Lafrenière's Impressive Turnaround
That Lafrenière is even in this position is a testament to one of the most impressive in-season turnarounds in recent Rangers memory. From October to December 2025, things were looking grim for the 2020 top pick. Over those first three months, he struggled to find any consistent rhythm, tallying just 20 points (eight goals and 12 assists) in 42 games as the bust narrative began to resurface.
But since January 1, 2026, Lafrenière has produced at a rapid rate. Over the last 39 games, all in calendar year 2026, he has looked like a completely different player, playing at nearly a point-per-game pace with 36 points (16 goals and 20 assists). This surge was fueled by a historic March, where he notched a career-best 19 points (nine goals and 10 assists) in 16 games, a stretch that firmly put him in position to chase this record tonight.
HAT TRICK FOR ALEXIS LAFRENIERE 🧢🧢🧢 pic.twitter.com/NgEYJj39Ie
— Gino Hard (@GinoHard_) March 11, 2026
Where things stand this month for Lafrenière
Heading into tonight's finale against the Lightning, Lafrenière has been grinding through the final month of the schedule to keep this chase alive. So far in April, he has four points (two goals and two assists) in six games, giving him a grand total of 56 points on the season. There have been three games this month that he's been blanked, but I'd expect him to go all out this evening.
While the surface stats are impressive, his underlying Evolving-Hockey metrics tell an even more dominant story. For the season, he boasts a 53.56 GF% and a 53.39 xGF%, and those numbers if you just look since January 1 are equally impressive. Since that point, Lafrenière has maintained a 56.13 GF% and a 53.05 xGF%. Lafrenière isn't just scoring, he is dictating the flow of the game every time he steps over the boards.
One final chance to make history... this season
The Rangers don't have much to play for in the standings, but for Lafrenière, tonight is everything. He will hope to find the scoresheet in Tampa to set a new career milestone and use that momentum to springboard into what will be a critical 2026-27 season.
In a year where bright spots have been hard to find at The Garden, Lafrenière's arrival as a legitimate top flight producer is a victory the organization desperately needs to carry into the summer. The fate of the Letter 2.0 retool involves Lafrenière one way or another, and here's to the budding Blueshirt ending the year on a good note.
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