On Tuesday night, one member of the Original Six teams reached a huge NHL milestone. David Pastrnak of the Boston Bruins reached 400 career goals after scoring against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Pastrnak now becomes the 112th player in NHL to join the 400 goals club.
Considering this milestone, there are going to be eyes on who reaches this milestone next. Of course, names like Connor McDavid and Nathan MacKinnon will eventually reach the 400 goals threshold quickly (and they aren't far behind). But there are two players on the Rangers that could feasibly reach the milestone — Mika Zibanejad and Artemi Panarin.
Zibanejad is currently at 319 goals in his career, while Panarin is at 307. But both stars are at different timelines.
Mika Zibanejad and Artemi Panarin both on different paths to 400 goal club
Panarin is currently 34 years old, while Zibanejad is 32. Panarin is the pure scorer while Zibanejad is the playmaker. But both are on differerent paths.
Panarin is in the midst of an important season. The winger is on the final year of his seven-year, $81.5 million contract signed in the summer of 2019. Panarin has been everything the Rangers could have hoped for, as he helped the team take it to the next level and reach the Eastern Conference Finals twice in his tenure. Thus far, he has 191 goals during his time with the Rangers.
But there is the question whether the Rangers will retain him. Panarin has expressed a desire to remain with the team, but there is a discrepancy about the contract. The Rangers reportedly offered Panarin a short-term, team-friendly deal in the offseason, but talks went nowhere. As of this writing, Panarin is in line to be one of the top free agents next summer, as stars like Connor McDavid, Jack Eichel, Kirill Kaprizov, and Kyle Connor all re-signed with their current teams. So, Panarin could feasibly test the market and cash-in.
There's also the possibility that Panarin could get traded this season if the Rangers fall out of playoff contention. That is a huge variable in Panarin's quest to 400 career goals.
As for Zibanejad, he is likely in the Rangers' plans for the long haul. Zibanejad signed an eight-year, $68 million contract extension back in 2022. That deal runs out at the end of the 2028-29 season. Most importantly, Zibanejad has a full no-movement clause, meaning he can't be traded to another team unless he approves it. Considering that knowledge, Zibanejad is the most likely to reach the 400 goal milestone while on the Rangers.
Given their current goal totals, the earliest they could reach that goal is next year, depending on how many goals they score this season. The Rangers have underperformed offensively, but recently have broken out of it in their 6-3 home win over the Nashville Predators. It's not only a matter of who reaches the milestone first, but also who could do so while wearing a Rangers uniform, considering Panarin's uncertainty.