The New York Rangers’ hot start has cooled off fast, and the latest NHL power rankings reflect just how quickly the wheels have come off.
After opening the 2026-27 regular season with a 6-2-0 record and looking like a playoff team out of the gate, the Rangers have fallen into a 1-4-1 skid. That slide, along with a growing list of goalie injuries, has pushed them into a rough stretch that now has them dropping hard in the rankings.
Austin Nivison of CBS Sports moved the Rangers down to No. 15, a seven-spot fall from last week. That made them the biggest mover down the list. On the other end, the New Jersey Devils were the week’s biggest riser, climbing 10 spots after, in part, their acquisition of Connor Hellebuyck from the Winnipeg Jets.
The Devils helped trigger New York’s current misery by beating the Rangers 7-1 at the Prudential Center on Thursday, Oct. 15.
The goaltending picture has become a major issue. Dylan Garand has now appeared in nine straight games, including seven consecutive starts, while Igor Shesterkin and Joonas Korpisalo remain sidelined.
He started to show the effects of that workload in recent outings, which led the Rangers to try to give him a breather. James Reimer, however, lasted only one period before getting pulled against the Los Angeles Kings.
Mike Sullivan said the defense needs to do a better job in front of the goaltenders, and there’s plenty for the Rangers to clean up overall. Garand’s early-season run has given way to tougher numbers lately.
In his last two starts, against the Toronto Maple Leafs and Ottawa Senators, he allowed five goals in each game. After Reimer was pulled and Garand came in, Garand stopped 15 of 17 shots, but his save percentage has now dipped below .900, with three straight appearances under that mark.
The problems don’t stop with the crease. The Rangers’ blue-line play has not been strong enough, with the Marcus Pettersson-Sean Durzi pair and the rookie tandem of Alberts Smits and Braden Schneider both struggling to get the job done.
Adam Fox and Vladislav Gavrikov remain a solid top pair, but they can’t carry the load every shift. And it hasn’t been limited to the defensemen, either, because forwards have also made mistakes in the defensive structure.
It’s added up to some ugly hockey for the Blueshirts lately. With five days off between games, the break arrives at the perfect time.
In Other News...
Panarin Just Reopened A Brutal Rangers Reality At MSG
Artemi Panarins return to Madison Square Garden once again put a spotlight on what the Rangers gave up when they moved on from him. In his second visit back since the trade, he was right in the middle of the action, scoring a goal and adding an assist as his new club handled the building with ease. For a Rangers team still trying to settle into life without him, it was another reminder of how quickly an old star can make a new place feel like home.
Panarin has been productive from the start this season, piling up seven goals and four assists in 10 games for the Los Angeles Kings, while the Rangers continue to look for answers from the player they brought in to replace him. Pavel Dorofeyev has managed only three goals in 14 games, and his recent move down to the third line only deepens the concern about whether New York has found the right answer yet. [Read more 🡒]
Rangers Still Have One Big Pavel Dorofeyev Debate Hanging Over Them
The Rangers have enough problems without having to worry about one of their big offseason additions, but Pavel Dorofeyevs early stretch in New York has become part of the conversation anyway. In a season where the club has dropped five of its last six and has had to navigate the ripple effects of Igor Shesterkins injury along with its own defensive issues, Dorofeyevs adjustment has been closely watched because he was brought in to help add more bite to the attack.
His numbers through 14 games have lagged a bit behind what he showed with the Vegas Golden Knights, but there are signs he is settling in. Dorofeyev has started to flash more of the offense the Rangers expected, and his recent run of productivity suggests this is still a work in progress rather than a finished judgment on the move. The bigger question now is whether the Rangers can count on that trend to keep building as they try to steady themselves. [Read more 🡒]
Rangers Prospects Are Starting To Build Real Momentum Overseas
A handful of Rangers prospects kept busy overseas last week, and there were signs that the organizations development pipeline is starting to pick up some real traction. Rico Gredig got on the board for EV Zug in Switzerland, while Mikkel Eriksen continued to hold a prominent role for Frjestad BK in Sweden, where he has been seeing top-six minutes and finding ways to stay involved offensively.
For a Rangers system that is always under the microscope, those kinds of updates matter because they show more than just ice time. Gredigs first goal of the season and Eriksens steady work in Sweden were part of a broader stretch that also included other prospects getting reps in their own leagues, a useful sign that several young players are building confidence at once rather than waiting for one breakout to carry the group. [Read more 🡒]