The Rangers’ first preseason night had the familiar feel of a Hartford runout, but the group they sent to New Jersey made it more interesting than the label suggests. With New York back in action at home against the Islanders on Tuesday, the Rangers rolled out what is likely to be Hartford Wolf Pack’s starting lineup, with Dylan Garand in goal, and still came away from a 3-2 loss looking like they had plenty to take from it.
The gap in talent was real. New Jersey dressed what was described as a 90% NHL roster, and the Devils had the edge on paper. But the Rangers’ younger players kept pushing, and a few of the pieces acquired in trades last season looked close to NHL-ready.
Garand, in particular, made a case for himself. He stopped 28 of 31 shots behind what was described as an 85% AHL defense and looked the part of an NHL goalie.
The goals against mostly came after ugly turnovers in the defensive zone, with a couple of plays catching him by surprise. One of those came when Vincent Iorio turned the puck over behind the net before Timo Meier finished short side.
That’s part of why Iorio’s night stood out for the wrong reasons. He did have a nice assist on Meier’s goal, but the overall picture was rough enough that he looks, at best, like an 8th or 9th defenseman - behind basically everyone else who has played an NHL game, and some who haven’t.
The more encouraging story was Liam Greentree. Chris Drury’s pitch on him is starting to make sense.
Greentree still needs time in the AHL, so there’s no reason to rush him, but he looked like a real piece in the Artemi Panarin trade. He had a couple of excellent chances and also helped tie the game at one with a sharp touch pass to a streaking Anton Blidh at the blue line, setting up the goal that beat Nico Dawes.
His shot remains his best weapon, just as it was in the OHL, but he also showed he can make clean passes that create space. The next steps are clear: improve his skating agility and get more responsible with the puck. That kind of development belongs in Hartford for now, but like Gabe Perreault, he’s the sort of player the Rangers will be tracking closely as they try to get him to the NHL as soon as possible.
Scott Morrow was another player who left a strong impression, and his situation is the one that really raises eyebrows. It’s hard not to wonder why he wasn’t trusted more last season, even when Adam Fox was out for months and the team leaned on Vlad Gavrikov instead. Gavrikov did what was asked of him and is a top pair defenseman, but Morrow looked like someone who can eventually handle a third-pair role while moving the puck.
The problem now is the roster math. Morrow is blocked on the right side until a trade happens, and he’s no longer waiver exempt.
If the Rangers keep him, they would need to waive Iorio and one of Urho Vaakanainen or Matthew Robertson. That’s not a simple call.
Still, the bigger takeaway from the night is straightforward: the Rangers have real depth. That wasn’t the case a year ago, when injuries to Miller, Fox, and Igor derailed everything. This group at least gives them options.
In Other News...
Rangers New-Look Lineup Just Got An Early Reality Check Against Islanders
The Rangers second preseason game offered a decent snapshot of what their opening-night group might look like, and for a while it looked like the new-look lineup was handling the Islanders just fine. New faces made an early impression, the pace had some bite to it, and New York built a 3-1 lead behind goals from Cole Beaudoin, Pavel Dorofeyev and Taylor Raddysh, with Igor Shesterkin turning aside a few dangerous chances to keep things on track.
But preseason is often less about the scoreboard than the warning signs, and this one had plenty of those mixed in with the positives. There were penalties, a fight between Liam Greentree and Scott Mayfield, and enough momentum swings to remind the Rangers that even a dress rehearsal can get messy fast, especially when a roster still trying to settle into itself starts to lose a little control. [Read more 🡒]
Alexis Lafrenire Still Faces The Rangers Question He Hasn't Settled
Alexis Lafrenire has settled into an important place in the Rangers lineup, even if the broader conversation around him still carries the weight of his first-overall draft status. The 2020 pick has given New York solid production and visible growth in the underlying numbers, the kind of steady progress that matters in a league where not every young star arrives on schedule. Last season, he matched a career high in points and remained one of the clubs more effective forwards by the advanced metrics that track overall impact.
The next question is less about whether Lafrenire belongs and more about how far his role can still grow in New Yorks attack. Projections continue to slot him as a top-six winger who should stay involved on the power play, and the Rangers will keep looking for that next layer of offense to show up alongside teammates such as Gabe Perreault. For a player who has already moved past the skepticism that followed him early on, the open-ended part of his story is whether the production simply stays useful, or finally starts to look like the kind of ceiling the Rangers have been waiting to see. [Read more 🡒]
Rangers Rookie Just Made The Opening Night Roster Debate Real
Alberts mits kept building his case in a preseason game against the Islanders, a night that gave the Rangers a closer look at what their 2026 fifth-overall pick can already bring. The 18-year-old logged 15:29 of ice time, flashed on both sides of the puck and looked right at home in the kind of setting young players usually need more time to adjust to, with the Garden spotlight and a veteran lineup on the other side.
Mike Sullivan liked what he saw from mits, especially the way he blended physical play with offensive awareness while showing he can handle NHL pace. The rookie said he felt comfortable with the speed of the game and valued the chance to play at Madison Square Garden, which only adds to the sense that the opening-night roster question is becoming more real by the day. [Read more 🡒]