The New York Rangers are starting to point back in the right direction, and the latest NHL power rankings reflect it.
After sliding hard in recent weeks, New York climbed from No. 20 to No. 18 in the newest rankings from Sean Gentille and Dom Luszczyszyn of The Athletic. The bump comes after a rough stretch that had the Rangers looking like a team trying to hold itself together, then a pair of home wins that steadied things just enough to matter.
That turnaround was not immediate. The Rangers opened the 2026-27 season 6-2-0, then hit a 1-5-1 skid that included multiple blowouts.
Injuries began to pile up, especially in goal, where Dylan Garand was being asked to shoulder nearly everything on his own. A five-day break did not exactly offer a soft landing either, since it ended with a matchup against the Edmonton Oilers and a 4-1 loss.
But the final two games of their four-game homestand gave them something better to work with. New York beat the St. Louis Blues 3-1 and the Philadelphia Flyers 3-2, and that was enough to build a little momentum heading into a four-game road trip against Western Conference opponents.
The climb in the rankings also came with movement around them. The Rangers moved ahead of the New York Islanders, who dropped from No. 14 to No. 19, and the Toronto Maple Leafs, who fell from No. 18 to No.
- The Detroit Red Wings also slid, going from No. 19 to No.
- Both teams New York just beat are ranked below them as well, with the Blues at No. 24 and the Flyers at No. 30, but for this Rangers group, any win counts.
Even with Igor Shesterkin out, the Rangers have continued to look strong at Madison Square Garden. They have already picked up eight home wins, a sharp reversal from how they played on their own ice during the 2025-26 season.
There are still plenty of issues to sort through, but there have been real bright spots. Adam Fox keeps playing like one of the league’s top defensemen, with 21 points in 17 games and a two-game multi-point streak. Tye Kartye has also become a major piece after being claimed off waivers from the Seattle Kraken near the end of February, working his way into the second line, the second power-play unit and a key role on the penalty kill.
Pavel Dorofeyev is another name trending up. After a painfully slow start, he has settled in more and more, picking up a point in six of his last seven games as his production starts to catch up to the underlying numbers.
In Other News...
Rangers Goaltending Crisis Has One Costly Fix Fans Will Debate
With Igor Shesterkin and Joonas Korpisalo both sidelined, the Rangers have been forced to lean on Dylan Garand for multiple starts and ride out a stretch that has only sharpened the concern around the crease. It is the kind of situation that can expose a team quickly, especially when the margin for error in the standings is already thin and every night can tilt the conversation from patience to urgency.
That urgency is why the idea of chasing a stabilizing answer keeps surfacing, even if the price would be steep. Nashville has the kind of goaltending depth that makes a move conceivable, but the Predators do not have much reason to part with a proven starter unless the return is strong enough to make them think twice, which leaves the Rangers facing a familiar dilemma: stand pat and wait for health, or pay up for certainty now. [Read more 🡒]
Rangers Suddenly Have Real Road Momentum After Another Strong Night
The Rangers have finally started to turn a long road trip into something more encouraging, stringing together three straight wins and collecting their first victory away from home on the four-game swing. It has been the kind of stretch that can change the feel of a season, especially when different parts of the lineup are contributing and several players are extending point streaks along the way.
Adam Fox has been at the center of it, continuing to drive the offense from the blue line while the team has found a steadier rhythm in front of him. There was also a notable milestone in goal, with Joonas Korpisalo making his season debut and giving the Rangers a fresh look between the pipes as they try to keep this momentum rolling through the rest of the trip. [Read more 🡒]
Rangers Fans Should Notice Who Is Driving Hartford Right Now
The first month in Hartford offered a useful snapshot of where the Rangers top affiliate stands as its 30th consecutive season at PeoplesBank Arena gets rolling. The Wolf Pack finished October at 5-6-1-0, and the clubs own monthly spotlight pointed to a few names worth tracking, with forward Liam Greentree, goaltender Callum Tung and forward Glenn Gawdin standing out in the early going.
Greentree gave the Wolf Pack some needed offense, while Tung helped steady the net with a strong opening stretch that included his first AHL shutout. Coach Jay Leach singled out both players for the way they handled the start of the season, and for Rangers fans, that kind of early traction in Hartford is always worth watching closely because it can hint at who might be pushing for a bigger role down the line. [Read more 🡒]