The 2025-26 regular season has finally arrived, and the New York Rangers and their fans are looking to flush away what was a disastrous campaign last year. After making it all the way to the Eastern Conference Finals in 2024, the Rangers massively underperformed, resulting in them missing the playoffs. That created an offseason of change.
The Rangers have a new head coach in Mike Sullivan, who jumped over from the Pittsburgh Penguins. Sullivan was long targeted by general manager Chris Drury, and didn't hesitate to sign him once he left the Penguins. There are also some players gone, such as Chris Kreider and K'Andre Miller. But there are new faces, such as Vladislav Gavrikov, Conor Sheary, and Taylor Raddysh.
So, do the Rangers have enough pieces to make a return trip to the playoffs? Let's give some predictions.
Let's start off with the projected lineup, per Daily Faceoff.
Left Wing | Center | Right Wing |
|---|---|---|
Will Cuylle | J.T. Miller | Mika Zibanejad |
Artemi Panarin | Vincent Trochek | Alexis Lafreniere |
Conor Sheary | Noah Laba | Taylor Raddysh |
Adam Edstrom | Sam Carrick | Matt Rempe |
Left Defense | Right Defense | |
Vladislav Gavrikov | Adam Fox | |
Carson Soucy | Will Borgen | |
Urho Vaakanainen | Braden Schneider |
How many points will the Rangers end up with?
Projected Total: 94 points
The Rangers massively underperformed last season, as they finished with just 85 points, one year removed from the team winning the President's Trophy for most points in the entire NHL with 114. The dropoff was ugly to see for Rangers fans.
Yes, the Rangers have been retooling their roster, but there is still so much talent on the team for them not to contend for a playoff spot. The problem is, the rest of the division and the conference is better. So, let's say the Rangers get to 92 points on the year. That should be enough for them to sneak into the playoffs as a wild card team.
Where will the Rangers finish against the Metropolitan Division?
Projected finish: 4th Place
While the Rangers' outlook isn't exactly the brightest, they can take solace in the fact that there are teams that are much worse off than them. The Pittsburgh Penguins are expected to be one of the worst teams in the league, even with Sidney Crosby on the roster. The Philadelphia Flyers are banking on their youth movement. The New York Islanders are another team retooling.
The top three spots of the Metropolitan Division are locked with the Carolina Hurricanes, Washington Capitals, and New Jersey Devils. Any order, that will be the top three teams in the division. The Columbus Blue Jackets might be the Rangers' main competition for fourth place, as they nearly missed out on the playoffs last year too. However, the Blue Jackets didn't really make any moves to improve their roster.
Considering the outlook of the division, a fourth-place finish is realistic for the Rangers.
Player to watch
The player to watch heading into the season is preseason darling Noah Laba. Entering training camp, Laba wasn't expected to be in the mix for a roster spot, instead projected to start the season with the Hartford Wolfpack. But with each preseason game, Laba stood out.
Through the preseason, Laba was a play-making machine, as he scored two goals and recorded four assists. One of those goals was an overtime winner against the Islanders. Laba really made Sullivan's job to set the Opening Night roster that much more difficult. Ultimately, Laba won the final spot overB Brett Berard.
Laba is projected to be the Rangers' third line center to open up the season. Considering how well he played in the preseason, he is a player worth watching.
Players to be concerned about
It's hard not to look towards Mika Zibanejad. He has been one of the players most ridiculed during their awful season last year. His production has dipped in the past two years, and he's under contract through the 2029-30 season.
Instead of playing center, Sullivan is moving Zibanejad to wing at his request, where he'll be on the top line with Miller centering. The hope is that removing the centerman responsibilities can help Zibanejad really produce.
There's also Alexis Lafreniere, who hasn't exactly lived up to the No. 1 overall selection in 2020. Lafreniere has shown that he can be one of their top producers with his 57-point 2023-24 season standing out. But the drop he had last year was concerning. Now, Sullivan is planning on playing him at both left and right wing to give the lineup more flexibility.
Finally, Artemi Panarin. The 2019 free agent signing has lived up to his contract in terms of on-ice production. But now, said deal is expiring after this season, and he's going to hit free agency in the summer. With Connor McDavid and Kirill Kaprizov off the board, Panarin will be one of the top players available. But to start the season, Panarin is dealing with an injury suffered in training camp. Will it affect his play?
Prospect to watch
Gabriel Perreault was the obvious name ot keep ane eye on during training camp, as he had a good chance of making the roster. He did make his debut last season, but played in just five games, where he didn't record a point. Let's be real, ex-coach Peter Laviolette didn't really give him a chance to shine. But Perreault didn't do enough at the tail end of the preseason to earn a spot.
Perreault is a first-round pick who was lauded for his scoring potential in the pros. Last season for Boston College, Perreault scored16 goals and recorded 32 assists for a total of 48 points in 37 games. Now, he is set to make his debut in Hartford. He will be a name fans keep an eye on. If he plays well, he could very well earn a promotion during the season, especially if Sullivan is looking for a spark in the forwards group.
Why fans can be cautiously optimistic
It's going to be extremely difficult for the Rangers to perform as poorly as they did last season. That would be a shocker. There is simply too much talent on this team to not be competitive.
The defensive group is a lot younger and, on paper, better than last year's squad. K'Andre Miller didn't pan out the way fans expected and was a liability at points during games. Ryan Lindgren exuded toughness, but was injury prone. Now, the team has a top left-handed defenseman in Gavrikov to give Adam Fox the defensive partner he's needed for quite some time. Not to mention, there are some young names that can improve this season, such as Will Borgen, Braden Schneider, and Urho Vaakanainen.
Plus, you can never count out the Rangers when they have one of the top goalies in the entire league in Igor Shesterkin.
The coaching staff is much better than last year's. The roster is too talented. Expect the Rangers to contend for a playoff spot this season.