Will the NY Rangers finally get the best of Florida in 2024-25?

A couple of months back, I asked whether the NY Rangers finally did “enough to put the Eastern Conference on notice.” The answer was mostly yes, but not without acknowledging two teams that also bettered their respective chances to win the Stanley Cup - the Boston Bruins and Florida Panthers. 

One of those teams, as we all know, may have done enough to repeat as champions, and they are, on paper, the tougher of the two. At this point, New York seems to be neck-and-neck with Florida heading into the season, especially since they acquired a solid forward in Reilly Smith and had foregone trading Jacob Trouba. 

Best yet, their core remains intact for at least another season, even if one of those players could be gone, regardless of whether the Blueshirts finally get past Florida. So there’s a definite sense of urgency in the air, but when the playoffs arrive, all 16 teams who make the postseason will share that same sense of urgency. 

So, to increase their chances of getting the best of the Panthers in 2024-25, the Blueshirts must continue to get better both now and at the trade deadline. 

Two variables will help the NY Rangers get past the Panthers

Two variables exist, and they both come to you from the bottom-six, starting with winger Matt Rempe. For one, you can’t help but get ecstatic over what Rempe said earlier this week about becoming a better player. While it’s great to play the enforcer role for a championship-caliber team, being purely an enforcer these days just isn’t a viable career option for a hockey player. 

If Rempe improves his game throughout the 2024-25 season and becomes a reliable producer on the bottom-six, the Blueshirts will be a better team. This doesn’t mean he needs to produce points, but rather sequences that will lead to points. Sure, occasionally fighting and intimidating opponents will help, but Rempe’s productivity on offense must improve. 

It’s also not too late to add one more depth player to the group of forwards, and in case you haven’t heard, James van Riemsdyk is still out there and the Rangers should be interested. Adding van Riemsdyk would make the team better in two ways: They’re getting an experienced veteran who can provide more leadership and a potential depth scorer. 

Of course, improving the team at the 2025 trade deadline will ultimately decide whether everything looks favorable to the Blueshirts when it comes to facing top-tier teams in the East, like Florida and Boston. But if Rempe improves during his first full season in the league and if the Rangers find a way to bring in someone like van Riemsdyk, they will look very good in what should be a memorable slate of matchups against a team like Florida this season.