The New York Rangers are down to their final days before the season starts, and the picture around this team has changed a lot since the summer began.
That’s not to say everything has looked sharp in the preseason. The Rangers are 0-2, and in their latest tune-up against the New York Islanders, they put most of their regulars on the ice, built a three-goal lead, and still ended up losing 4-3. Preseason results don’t count, but that one did point to a few areas the Rangers may want to clean up before the games start meaning something.
Even with that rough showing, the bigger story is what the Rangers did over the offseason. On paper, they attacked the areas that needed work and came away looking much stronger than the version of the team that finished last season in last place in the Eastern Conference.
That’s why Sara Civian of Bleacher Report included New York in a recent set of bold predictions, saying the Rangers would be back in the playoff conversation. Given where they ended up a year ago, that’s a big swing. But it’s not a blind one.
The offense got a meaningful boost with the addition of Pavel Dorofeyev, whom the Rangers acquired from the Vegas Golden Knights. He arrives as the kind of scorer New York needed, and that should help the attack right away.
The blue line also got a major overhaul. Sean Durzi and Marcus Pettersson are set to give the Rangers a totally new-look second pair, and the team used the NHL Draft to add Alberts Smits with the fifth overall pick. Smits could even be in the mix for Opening Night, and he looks ready for the league.
That defensive work matters because it was tied to a clear objective: making it easier for the Rangers to move the puck out of their own zone. By the look of it, that goal was met.
So while the preseason hasn’t delivered a win yet, the offseason gave the Rangers a real foundation to work with. If the changes translate, there’s a legitimate path for them to climb back into the playoff discussion.
In Other News...
Rangers Gave Fans Real Reason To Feel Good Before Bruins Opener
A strong night against the Islanders gave the Rangers a little preseason momentum as they headed toward the Boston Bruins and the start of games that count. New York jumped early and kept pouring it on in a 6-1 win, with Oliver Bjorkstrand, J.T. Miller, Tye Kartye, Will Cuylle and Mika Zibanejad all getting on the scoresheet while Adam Fox set the tone with three assists.
For a team trying to build some early confidence, it was the kind of performance that checked a lot of boxes without asking the staff to read too much into the result. The Rangers have now strung together two straight preseason wins, and after the offensive showing on Long Island, they have at least given their fans a reason to feel better about where things stand before the opener in Boston. [Read more 🡒]
Rangers Still Have One Roster Decision Hanging Before Opening Night
The preseason ended on a high note for the Rangers, who rolled past the Islanders 6-1 with a lineup that looked awfully close to what they expect to roll out on opening night. Even with the win serving as a tidy finishing touch, the final roster remains unfinished, with two spots still open as the club heads into the last stretch before the regular season begins.
What makes the wait interesting is the shape of the roster itself. New York has already trimmed its camp group and is still staring at a shortage of clear center options, which has fueled the idea that the answer could come from outside the organization. The waiver wire is part of the conversation now, and the next move may say as much about the teams depth concerns as the preseason finale did about its top-end readiness. [Read more 🡒]
Rangers Face One Season-Defining Question Heading Into 2026-27
The Rangers head toward 2026-27 with a much cleaner-looking backbone than they have had in recent seasons. Between Adam Fox, Vlad Gavrikov and Igor Shesterkin, the club has the kind of defensive and goaltending structure that can keep games manageable, and that is usually the starting point for any team trying to steady itself in the East.
Still, the real question is whether the rest of the roster can do enough to turn that stability into wins. New Yorks season could swing quickly depending on health and the growth of its younger forwards, with the gap between a playoff berth and a frustrating year likely resting on whether the offense finds enough consistency to support the pieces already in place. [Read more 🡒]