It stings, but there should be no shame.
It’s been just over a week since the New York Rangers were eliminated by the Florida Panthers in the Eastern Conference Final. Looking back, it’s abundantly clear that the superior team won. All six games were competitive, but the Panthers were. They outscored the Rangers 16-2, along with offensive zone time, slot chances, and rush chances heavily in their favor. If not for Igor Shesterkin, the margin of victory would have been orders of magnitude greater.
There should be no shame in losing to a world-class team playing mistake free hockey.
The magic of this season coming to an abrupt halt is what stings.
The Rangers found themselves in 1st place early on and never looked back. Other than a bump in the road in January, the Rangers never strayed too far away from the win column. En route to the President’s Trophy, the Blueshirts picked up a franchise best 55 wins, 28 of which were of the comeback variety – good for another franchise record. There was this overwhelming hunch they’d come out on top, regardless of the score. This team had every answer. It felt like a joy ride. Their aura was personified at MetLife Stadium against the Islanders in the 2024 Stadium Series, erasing a 4-1 deficit to win in overtime.
Once the 1994 comparisons started to pile up – from earthquakes, to solar eclipses, to OJ Simpson in the news, to the 7-0 start to the playoffs, to Chris Kreider’s heroic Messier-esque hat trick, it was hard not to buy into the team of destiny narrative. All year, the vibe around the team felt different. Why not this group? Why not this year?
For me personally, this season was filled unforgettable experiences as a fan. I was able to see the Rangers play in Montreal with my uncle, in Boston with one of my best friends, witnessed them clinch the President’s Trophy at MSG with my girlfriend and basked in the spectacle that was Game 1 of the Hurricanes series with my whole family. I also had the honor of attending Henrik Lundqvist’s Hall of Fame induction weekend in Toronto – which gave me enough memories to fill a whole blog post. I’m so grateful for all of it.
This season was a failure when you consider the goal of bringing a Stanley Cup to New York, but I’ll never forget how fun the journey was.
The Good News
Maybe the biggest bright spot is the leap Alexis Lafrenière made this year. I mean, the Rangers have a budding superstar on their hands. Forget the career best numbers, posted primarily at 5v5 with a whopping zero minutes on the top power play unit. The most important thing is he’s absolutely oozing with confidence. The goal he scored against the Panthers in Game 3 tells you all you need to know.
It’s wild to think back to the preseason narrative to “cut our losses” with this kid. We really had people confidently claiming he didn’t care about hockey because he was playing in a softball tournament over the summer. Insanity. Quick humble brag here, but I was not one of those people. Back in July when the complaining was reaching a fever pitch, I wrote about 2024 being the Year Of The Laf. Nailed it!
Backcheck, forecheck, Trocheck. Vinny Trocheck did everything asked of him and more this year. I’m not sure there’s a facet of the game he didn’t have an impact on. He notched a career best 77 points in the regular season and then 20 points in 16 playoff games. Much like his line mate Lafrenière, Trocheck elevated his game in the postseason and the value in that can’t be understated. It’s looking like highway robbery the Rangers are only paying him $5.6m/year through 2028.
I give so much credit to Peter Laviolette & his staff for the job they’ve done implementing a new culture. The motto has been “compete, compete, compete” since Day 1 of training camp and the competitive fire was ablaze all year long. You got the overwhelming sense this group was prepared for all situations prior to puck drop, a far cry from the regime under Gerard Gallant. I thought Laviolette was brilliant with the media as well – always had his guys’ backs, explained his thought processes without giving away too much information and was respectful all the way through. I hope he’s behind the bench at MSG for the the long haul.
Chris Drury and the front office aren’t looking at very tough decisions from an unrestricted free agent (UFA) standpoint. Jack Roslovic, Alex Wennberg, Blake Wheeler, Erik Gustafsson and Chad Ruhwedel are due for new contracts. I can’t imagine any of these players will be back. Potentially Gustafsson? Drury may want to shake something up, but at least he’s not backed into a corner with a key piece needing a new deal as a UFA. As far as restricted free agents go, he’ll need to make decisions on Kaapo Kakko, Ryan Lindgren and Braden Schneider. I’m not the man in charge but it feels like Schneider should be the priority.
Matt Rempe is not a sideshow, a one-trick pony or whatever else the analytics community wants to label him as. His physical presence has value and has more to offer than people give him credit for. The Rangers have already invested significant time and energy into his development, and I believe they’re going to continue to do so. He’s still only 21-years-old and building out his overall skillset. I was super impressed with his exit interview – it’s apparent he’s committed to improving all areas of his game and desperately wants to realize his full potential. He’s got jokes, he’s got charisma and his energy is a net positive for this team.
In the background of all the above is the gift the Rangers have in goal. It feels crazy to say this fresh off the Henrik Lundqvist era, but the window is open as long as Igor Shesterkin is inbetween the pipes. We’re so blessed as fans in that regard.
The Bad News
With the way the Rangers fizzled out in the playoffs the past three seasons, the question of whether this core has flaws is a valid one. As expected, Chris Kreider was blunt in his response to the inquiry.
Chris Drury was a bit more coy in his response and makes you wonder if a big move is on the horizon this summer. It feels like nothing is off the table.
I’ve been wondering about the state of the defense core. Are they big enough? Are they mean enough? History is painting a clear description of what the back end should look like on Stanley Cup winning teams. Once the postseason rolls around, you want guys on the back end that impose their will physically and intimidate the opponent. Shoutout to Matt Murley on “Game Notes” for bringing this idea to the forefront. Other than Trouba being a wild card, I didn’t get the feeling the Rangers defensemen were scaring anyone. I think it’s time to reassess the Rangers’ blue line and either upgrade where it makes sense or demand a different attitude from certain guys.
It’s unfortunate Kaapo Kakko didn’t take the next step forward in his career. He was given plenty of opportunities with Kreider and Zibanejad on the top line. At this point, the excuses aren’t very justifiable. It feels like he’d benefit from a change of scenery, but the Rangers could still use his defensive prowess. I thought he was super accountable during his exit interview and forthcoming with his struggles. I don’t really have a strong opinion one way or the other, curious to see what the decision ultimately is.
It’s not exactly ideal the Rangers have so much money locked up in guys that aren’t getting younger or quicker. I think Jacob Trouba is at the forefront of this discussion. I hate to say it, but he was pretty brutal during these playoffs. On the ice for plenty of crucial goals against, took too many penalties and it feels like his puck moving abilities have rapidly declined. He’s owed $8m/year and might find himself on the 3rd pairing next season. That doesn’t seem like the best allocation of capital in a hard salary cap environment. The Rangers were bold enough to trade away Captain Cally (Ryan Callahan) in 2014 and history may repeat itself a decade later.
Is It October Yet?
Life isn’t fair sometimes, neither is hockey. A bounce here, a bounce there can be the difference between pain and glory. The only choice you really have is to quit or get back on the horse. Tyler Seguin delivered this message beautifully, shortly after his Dallas Stars were eliminated by the Edmonton Oilers in the West. Absolutely worth watching the full clip here and reading the accompanying thoughts from Daniel Carcillo.
The sting is real, but the window is wide open and I can’t wait for new beginnings in October. It’ll be an interesting summer for Drury, but I have a ton of faith in his judgement. One day there will be a parade in New York City of epic proportions and these lows will make the high all the more euphoric.
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