The Rangers’ first-line experiment has given them exactly what they needed in the opening stretch of 2026-27: a unit that looks connected, dangerous and, most importantly, stable.
J.T. Miller, Pavel Dorofeyev and Oliver Bjorkstrand have been the thread running through New York’s first three games, and the early numbers back up what the eye test has already suggested.
The trio has posted a 69.3 expected goal share and a 10-3 edge in high-danger chances, per Natural Stat Trick. That’s the kind of start that can carry a team through the bumps, especially after the Blueshirts opened with a rough 3-0 loss to the Boston Bruins on Tuesday.
Since then, the Rangers have answered with back-to-back wins that look a lot more like the team they hoped to be. They beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 5-1 in their home opener Thursday, then followed it up with a 2-0 road win over the Detroit Red Wings on Friday.
The line has only scored once, but it was a clean piece of work against Tampa Bay. Bjorkstrand picked off a turnover at center ice, drove in and set up Dorofeyev for the finish that made it 2-0 in the first period.
Dorofeyev, the Rangers’ major offseason addition, has looked every bit the kind of scorer they paid for. Bjorkstrand’s feel for the game has shown up quickly too, along with the sort of timely decision-making that helped him pile up six 20-goal seasons before a down year with the Lightning in 2025-26. But the biggest difference-maker so far has been Miller.
After an injury-riddled, frustrating 2025-26 season in which his rough edges often showed, Miller has come out looking healthier, sharper and more settled in his second year as captain. That’s been evident since camp and carried right into the season.
“I feel good. I thought we had a great camp, I think the team is jelling really well,” Miller said Sept.
- “I feel like we had a short time to get to know a lot of new faces and I thought we did a good job doing that.
Everyone seems to fit in great. I thought there was a really good pace and energy and good bite to our group so far in the preseason.”
That version of Miller - the force who can control shifts, win battles down low and drive play - is the one Chris Drury was chasing when he traded for him during the 2024-25 season and then handed him the captaincy last September. The player who averaged nearly 95 points from 2021-24 with the Canucks and had 35 points in his first 32 games as a Ranger is starting to look like that guy again.
That matters because the rest of the forward group is still sorting itself out.
Mika Zibanejad, Gabe Perreault and Alexis Lafreniere have put up a 58.2 expected goal share through three games, but their 5-on-5 impact has been uneven. Perreault tipped in a goal against Tampa Bay at even strength and also assisted Sean Durzi’s power-play goal in Detroit.
Zibanejad scored on a power-play rebound Thursday. Lafreniere, though, has been hard to notice, and the line still looks like it’s searching for a rhythm after finishing last season as the Rangers’ best unit.
The third line of Will Cuylle, Noah Laba and Kartye has also had a mixed start, with a 46.2 expected goal share and a 14-12 shot-chance deficit over the three games. The fourth line - Kartye, Joe Veleno and Matt Rempe or Jaroslav Chmelar - has been pinned back at even strength, posting a 28.7 expected goal share across the two alignments.
That leaves even more on Miller’s shoulders. When he’s right, he can tilt the ice almost by himself, and the Rangers have already seen flashes of that through close-in pressure and chance creation. The challenge is keeping the edge without letting it spill over.
Miller’s temper is never far away. He showed that Friday, clenching his teeth and hammering his stick on the boards when Kartye’s third-period deflection just missed giving New York a 2-0 lead. Perreault, standing next to him, looked a little surprised by the captain’s outburst.
Still, that edge can be useful if it’s channeled the right way. The Rangers got a reminder of that from Sean Durzi after the win in Detroit.
“We came in here (at second intermission), and obviously, leadership led the way,” Durzi said after Friday’s game. “(Miller) comes in and (says), ‘Find energy in a 1-0 game going into the third,’ and we kind of built off that.
I thought our third period was great. We were stingy, heavy defensively, and I thought we did a good job throughout, just breaking out pucks, playing as a five-man unit, and I think it showed.”
For now, that’s the formula. If Miller keeps driving the line, Dorofeyev keeps finishing and Bjorkstrand keeps making the smart plays that open everything up, the Rangers have a top-six group that can give them a real foundation. And for a team trying to climb back into the playoff picture after two straight seasons without one, that’s a pretty important place to start.
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