It's official: Hockey returns this month.
Yes, while the regular season starts next month, the New York Rangers have an important September ahead. Between preseason games and training camp, the Blueshirts look to repeat the regular season success they had and much more. After losing to the Florida Panthers in the Eastern Conference Finals last season, New York's goal stays the same - win the Stanley Cup.
There's a long season ahead for the Rangers, who had a quieter offseason than a lot of teams around them. Mainly, Metropolitan Division foes - including the Carolina Hurricanes, New Jersey Devils and Pittsburgh Penguins - had offseasons that saw them bulk up their roster and could compete next season.
To compete for the Stanley Cup, New York needs to take care of business in the regular season. While there are a lot of questions about how New York is going to rebound after last year's Eastern Conference Finals exit, the Rangers should still be the favorites in the Metropolitan Division.
After winning the Metropolitan Division and Presidents' Trophy in the 2023-2024 season, the Rangers got better this offseason
While the Blueshirts had a quiet season, the roster that Peter Laviolette will trot out opening night against the Penguins is better than last year's. Using DailyFaceoff.com projected lines, you can see the lineup is mostly similar with the three changes in bold.
Forwards: Panarin-Trocheck-Lafreniere, Kreider-Zibanejad-Reilly Smith, Cuylle-Chytil-Kakko, Vesey-Sam Carrick-Rempe
Defense: Lindgren-Fox, Miller-Schneider, Zac Jones-Trouba
If these are the lines that New York rolls out on October 9, the one major change is Reilly Smith in the RW1 spot. Last season, it was a revolving door; between Blake Wheeler, Jack Roslovic, Kaapo Kakko and whoever else Laviolette put in there, New York could not find a consistent linemate for Mika Zibanejad and Chris Kreider. This has been a problem since the Rangers traded Pavel Buchnevich in 2021.
The hope is that Smith solves this for the immediate future. He put up 40 points with Pittsburgh last season before the Rangers traded a 2025 fifth-round and 2027 second-round pick for the winger this summer. His resume speaks for itself - he won the Stanley Cup with the Vegas Golden Knights in 2023 and has been a key contributor in many different locker rooms.
Defensively, Zac Jones took a step forward in 2023, but now he has the potential to be an every game type of player. He'll take the role that Erik Gustaffson held last season and hopes to expand on it; Jones has an offensive side to his game that will only evolve.
Moreover, New York hopes to have a healthy Filip Chytil for the majority of the season. The 24-year-old played only 10 games in the regular season, and while he returned in the Stanley Cup Playoffs it was not at full strength. Chytil set career highs in goals, assists and points (22/23/45) in the 2022-2023 season, and when healthy, he'll bring contributions to the Rangers lineup.
With Zibanejad, Vincent Trocheck and Chytil, New York has one of the best center combinations in the NHL. They should have this for years to come as well, with all three players under contract for at least three more years.
The Rangers still have one of the best lineups on paper going into the 2023-2024 season and have the potential to get better. There's still a lot to be unseen, but the fact is they are still a contender.
Though, we haven't talked about New York's biggest difference maker — No. 31 in the crease.
Regardless of what the Rangers are, they still have Igor Shesterkin.
This cannot be stated enough: when a team has a goaltender like Igor Shesterkin, they have a chance to win at any given time.
It's been the case for the Blueshirts for years. Since Shesterkin debuted in early 2020, whenever he is on the ice - regardless of the lineup in front of him - he gives the Rangers a chance to win.
With Shesterkin, New York should be considered the odds on favorite for the Metropolitan Division, and moreover, are contenders for the Stanley Cup. Look at the stats, his 2021-2022 Vezina Trophy, performance in the Stanley Cup Playoffs or something else, but it's clear he's not only one of the best goaltenders, but one of the biggest difference makers in the league.
Though the offseason was quiet, the Rangers hopes remain the same
For 82 games last season, the New York Rangers were the best team in the NHL. That's why they won the Presidents' Trophy, got home ice for the Stanley Cup Playoffs and were one of the favorites to win it all. The disappointing thing is that they weren't the last team standing.
But, with what they return and the upgrades they made, they should and will be considered one of the top teams again with the potential to win it all.
This starts with competition inside the Metropolitan, which is arguably the best division in the NHL. While other teams made upgrades, its hard to ignore the Rangers.
New York has a lot of goals this year. Winning the Metro has to be the first one.