The Rangers weren’t supposed to feel this good this early.
New York came into the season with expectations muted after general manager Chris Drury spent the offseason reshaping the roster in a way that looked more like careful maintenance than a full-blown overhaul. Vincent Trocheck was among the veteran pieces moved on from, while the blue line got sturdier with the additions of Marcus Pettersson and Sean Durzi. The team also brought in winger Pavel Dorofeyev, a scorer who was expected to help in the finishing department.
That backdrop made the opening-night shutout loss to the Boston Bruins feel like a warning shot. After two straight seasons out of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, including a last-place finish in the Metropolitan Division a year ago, the Rangers looked like a team still trying to find its footing.
Instead, they’ve quickly flipped the script.
New York has won its past three games and outscored opponents 11-3 over that stretch, doing it without riding any one player on an unsustainable heater. The early turnaround was the focus on Tuesday’s episode of Daily Faceoff Live, where host Tyler Yaremchuk, co-host and former NHL goaltender Carter Hutton, and former NHL video coach Steve Peters dug into what’s changed.
Yaremchuk asked Peters what had stood out most about the Rangers so far, especially after Peters had said last week that he liked them more than most around the hockey world.
Peters pointed first to the blend of established names and younger players trying to force their way into bigger roles.
“It’s that mix of veteran guys, Zibanejad, Miller, some guys we’ve seen with New York, that have a lot to prove by the way, without Panarin in the lineup. But it’s the young guys.
It’s Perreault. Lafreniere’s got to take another step this year.
Tye Kartye, Will Cuylle, they’ve got a lot of guys that need to step forward. So it’s very similar to what you’re seeing in Pittsburgh, but there’s just something special going on in New York, and it starts on the back end.
Their goaltender, Shesterkin, has been absolutely lights out as the season gets going… Dorofeyev’s gonna be a big part of this team and how he can add to the offense… 20 power play goals last season. He could be a big factor.
He hasn’t been yet. Durzi on the back end is going to take off some of that offense away from Fox.
He’s going to be another right-hand shot that’s going to be able to get pucks to the net and be another guy who can get pucks up the ice quickly… Gabe Perreault, the 21-year-old, 27 points last year, he’s got three points in four games already, and Cuylle, big body, physical… after those hard forechecks, he gets puck to the net. He’s had back-to-back 20-goal seasons.”
That mix - veteran urgency, young legs, and strong work on the back end - is what’s fueling New York’s rebound. And for now, it’s enough to turn an uneasy start into something that looks a lot more encouraging.
In Other News...
Alexis Lafrenire Just Became The Face Of This Rangers Surge
The Rangers latest surge kept rolling at home with a 5-2 win over the Islanders, their fourth straight victory, and it came with a little bit of everything the building could have asked for. Cole Beaudoin made his NHL debut after being recalled because Joe Veleno was sidelined by injury, while Semyon Varlamov got his first regular-season start in 676 days after going through knee surgeries. It was the kind of night that felt like another small marker for a team trying to stack wins and settle into something sturdier.
Alexis Lafrenire was at the center of it again, driving the offense in a game where the Rangers looked increasingly comfortable pressing the pace and closing it out. His latest performance only added to the sense that New York has found a reliable front-facing spark during this run, especially with the way the wins are starting to come in different forms. The bigger question now is whether this stretch is the start of something more lasting, with Lafrenire right in the middle of it. [Read more 🡒]
Rangers Face A Different Capitals Threat In Ovechkins Final Run
The Rangers have responded to an opening-night shutout loss by rattling off four straight wins, but the next stretch of the schedule brings a different kind of attention to the Metropolitan Division. Washington is still built around Alex Ovechkins presence, and the Capitals remain one of the leagues more familiar rivals for New York as this young season starts to settle in.
Ovechkins final NHL run gives every meeting with Washington a little extra weight, even as the Capitals have quietly adjusted their look up front. With new faces around the roster and a franchise icon in his last lap, the matchup carries both the usual division stakes and a hint of transition, making the Rangers next check-in with the Caps feel like more than just another early-season game. [Read more 🡒]
Mike Sullivan Is Already Changing The Feel Around These Rangers
The early tone around the Rangers has shifted quickly this season, and Mike Sullivan deserves a big share of the credit for it. New York has looked sharper and more connected in the opening stretch, with better chemistry and a more competitive edge showing up in the way the team is playing. Sullivan has already left his mark not just on the bench, but in the way the roster is being handled and in the steadier performances coming from the lineup.
For a team that spent so much time searching for the right mix, that matters. The change in feel is obvious enough that Sullivan is already drawing attention beyond the day-to-day results, with some of the early-season buzz centering on what his impact could mean over a full year. The Rangers are moving in the right direction, and the next question is how long this momentum can last once the league starts testing them more seriously. [Read more 🡒]