The Rangers have taken their share of hits already this season, but they’re still right in the mix and starting to find their footing again.
New York lost Igor Shesterkin to a season-ending lower-body injury on Oct. 9, a blow that would have knocked plenty of teams off course. Instead, the Rangers have stayed afloat in the Metropolitan Division and Eastern Conference and remain in the hunt for a playoff spot. Heading into the final game of their four-game road trip, they’ve won four times in November and have only dropped games to the Edmonton Oilers on Nov. 1 and Nov. 9, both by 4-1 and 3-1 scores.
That recent run is part of why the Rangers look a little shortchanged in the latest ESPN NHL power rankings. New York climbed two spots to No. 18, but given the way they’ve played lately, they may deserve even more respect. They’ve won four of their last five and have been outperforming expectations for much of the season.
This week’s rankings focused on how teams stack up at the quarter-mark of the season against preseason point projections. The Rangers entered the year with an over/under of 86.5 points, and even after the Shesterkin injury and a rough 1-6-1 stretch late in October, they’re still tracking toward 96.6 points with a 57.5% points percentage.
The schedule should give them a chance to keep building. New York faces the Vancouver Canucks on Nov. 13, one of only four games on the calendar through Nov.
- After that, the Rangers return to Madison Square Garden for matchups with the Montreal Canadiens on Nov. 16 and the Carolina Hurricanes on Nov. 22, before heading to Buffalo to face the Sabres on Nov.
That lighter stretch should also give Mike Sullivan’s group time to clean up a few things. He wants the offense creating more chances, especially the high-danger kind, and he’d like to see more shot attempts overall.
The power play has also lagged behind last season’s standard. After finishing fifth in the league in power-play percentage a year ago, New York sits 21st at 19.64% right now.
For the Rangers, the formula is pretty clear: get steadier goaltending from Dylan Garand and Joonas Korpisalo, keep cashing in at home, and keep stacking points against teams below them in the standings. That’s been enough to keep them moving in the right direction.
In Other News...
Chris Kreider's MSG Return Suddenly Feels Far Less Certain
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For New York fans, the possibility of Kreider missing that game adds another layer to what was already going to be a notable return. There was no postgame update on his condition, and with Montreal still waiting on clarity, the matchup at MSG now feels far less certain to include one of the more familiar faces in recent Rangers history. [Read more 🡒]
Rangers Fans Are Already Split On A Debate That Could Grow Fast
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Matt Rempe has become part of that same debate, with some fans focused on his limited playing time and others on the parts of his game that still need to catch up. A scouts warning to hold off on sweeping judgments is worth remembering here, because the season is still young enough for opinions to swing quickly, and the Rangers are already giving their supporters plenty to argue about. [Read more 🡒]
Adam Fox Snub Looks A Lot Different After Team USA Chaos
Adam Foxs omission from the U.S. mens Olympic hockey team looked like one of those decisions that would linger all winter, especially given how much attention it drew at the time. For the Rangers defenseman, it was a notable slight in a season when Team USA was supposed to be built around its best available talent, and it left plenty of people around the sport wondering what the selection process had really prioritized.
Since then, the picture around that roster has gotten much messier. Several of the players who made the team, including Vincent Trocheck, Brady Tkachuk, Dylan Larkin, Connor Hellebuyck and Quinn Hughes, have been tied to trades or trade demands from their NHL clubs, with conflicting reports and plenty of fan reaction following each development. In that light, Foxs absence does not look quite as strange as it did in the moment, and it adds another layer to a situation that keeps reflecting poorly on the way that U.S. team was put together. [Read more 🡒]