Alexis Lafrenière’s rise has been slower than the spotlight New York once put on him, but the Rangers may finally be seeing the player they drafted first overall in 2020.
For a while, the conversation around Lafrenière drifted toward disappointment. The expectation was immediate stardom, and when that didn’t arrive, the “ bust ” talk started to follow him.
But that framing ignored the bigger issue early in his career: he simply didn’t have the runway. With established stars ahead of him and no power-play opportunity, Lafrenière had to make his living at even strength, a tough place for any young player trying to force his way into a bigger role.
That experience shaped him. Instead of becoming a pure flashpoint scorer right away, he developed into a more complete player and a reliable secondary scoring option. The label attached to him never quite matched the way his game kept growing.
The clearest sign of that growth came late in the 2025-26 season. After the Rangers traded Artemi Panarin, Lafrenière moved into a top-six role with Mika Zibanejad and Gabe Perreault, and the fit clicked immediately.
Over his final 29 games, he scored 14 goals and totaled 28 points, finishing the season with 57 points. The numbers mattered, but so did the way he produced them: he was helping drive a line and shoulder the offense when the Rangers needed it.
Now 24, Lafrenière is entering his prime and is locked into a long-term contract through 2032. That gives the Rangers time to keep building around him while they see just how high his ceiling really is.
Not every first overall pick follows the same script. Some take longer to find their footing. In Lafrenière’s case, the finish to 2025-26 suggests the next step could come fast, and a breakout 2026-27 season is very much in play.
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How The Rangers Landed A Franchise Icon Still Feels Unreal
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Maloney said the process leaned heavily on European scout Christer Rockstrom, who had Lundqvist highly rated, and on his own willingness to trust the board when the goalie was still there late. What followed was one of the great scouting wins in team history, as Lundqvist grew into one of the NHLs best goaltenders and the winningest netminder in Rangers history, a result that still seems almost too good to have been real. [Read more 🡒]