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The New York Rangers came within two wins of advancing to the Stanley Cup Final in 2021-22, and postseason expectations were skyhigh for a Blueshirts team that went 47-22-13 the following year. But instead of another deep run — the Rangers beat the Pittsburgh Penguins and Carolina Hurricanes in back-to-back Game 7s to reach the Eastern Conference Final in 2022 — the sky came falling down.
After opening up a 2-0 lead on the New Jersey Devils in Round 1, New York somehow lost four of the final five games of the series to finish their season much earlier than any Rangers fan anticipated. That crushing playoff defeat led to Gerard Gallant getting fired, Artemi Panarin shaving his head, and nothing but questions and speculation heading into 2023-24.
But with Peter Laviolette behind the bench this time around, the Rangers are putting together a phenomenal regular season. Sitting in first place in the Metropolitan Division with a sparkling 28-13-2 record, New York has been the class of ClutchPoints' weekly NHL Power Rankings since Week 8 (they were just usurped in Week 14).
Still, it's been a fantastic bounce back for one of the National Hockey League's premier teams. Although the regular-season means nothing to this experienced roster, it's been a nearly flawless first 43 games for the Blueshirts. And the catalyst of that success has been the excellence of the new second line.
Offence grade: A
It's a second line only in name. Panarin, Vincent Trocheck and Alexis Lafreniere have been excellent for the Rangers in 2023-24. And the Breadman is leading the way after a ghastly postseason that saw the superstar somehow score just two assists over a seven-game series vs. the Devils. The 32-year-old needed to be much better, and he has been. Panarin is currently fourth in league scoring with 27 goals and 60 points in just 43 games.
Trocheck has also been excellent, forming instant chemistry with Panarin and seeming poised to shatter career-highs across the board. The 30-year-old has compiled 43 points of his own — in the same amount of games. And Lafreniere is finally looking like a top-six forward; he's been good for 11 goals and 26 points.
Besides that excellent line, the Rangers have been getting contributions up and down the lineup, although Blake Wheeler has struggled to make an offensive impact with his new team. Mika Zibanejad also struggled out of the gate, but has been on a heater recently that has the Swede back to point-per-game status in 2023-24 (41 points in 42 games).
The youngsters have not looked at all out of place, either. Both Will Cuylle and Jonny Brodzinski have been effective forecheckers on the fourth line, while chipping in some offense of their own. With Kaapo Kaako returning to the lineup and Filip Chytil hopefully not too far behind, the Rangers' forwards have been effective and continue to drive the bus for this team.
Defence grade: A-
It's a similar story with the defense. The Rangers have an experienced D-core that have been playing together for a long time and continue to excel in 2023-24. That starts with former Norris Trophy winner Adam Fox, who missed some time with injury but has still potted seven goals and 30 points in 33 games. He continues to have great chemistry with Ryan Lindgren on the top pairing.
And Jacob Trouba and K'Andre Miller continue to form an effective second pair that can hit, block, and create offense when necessary from the back end. That can also be said of Erik Gustafsson, who filled in on the top powerplay unit admirably while Fox was injured and has an incredibly respectable 21 points in 43 games in 2023-24.
This Rangers D-core is experienced and effective, and it knows how to win. It's built for the postseason, and GM Chris Drury will likely keep a third pairing of Gustafsson-Braden Schneider, while keeping Fox-Lindgren and Miller-Trouba for the remainder of the regular season at least.
New York is giving up just 2.81 goals per game, good enough for ninth place in the NHL. And that's without Igor Shesterkin playing the kind of lights out hockey between the pipes that Rangers fans are used to seeing from the Russian. Speaking of goaltending, it's been solid if unspectacular this season.
Goaltending grade: B+
Shesterkin has a career goals-against average of 2.44 and a save percentage of .921, so his 2.80 GAA and .906 SV% this year clearly leaves something to be desired. But the former Vezina Trophy winner has been much better as of late, giving up just three total goals in back-to-back wins over the Washington Capitals and Seattle Kraken this week.
But maybe the most surprising part of this roster is the resurgence of two-time Stanley Cup champion Jonathan Quick. The 37-year-old has been fantastic as a backup for the Rangers, posting a 2.49 GAA and .915 save percentage over 14 starts — nine of them wins. He's provided stable goaltending when Shesterkin hasn't looked like himself, and is a big reason why the team has been consistently at the peak of the Eastern Conference in 2023-24. It's huge that Laviolette can confidently play the backup in any situation, and Quick is the perfect veteran leader — who has been to multiple Stanley Cup Finals — to backup Shesterkin.
Overall, it's been a great start for the Rangers. It's impossible to deny that. Panarin is back, Trocheck is in the midst of a career season, the defense is holding up, and both Shesterkin and Quick are providing above-average goaltending. Laviolette looked to be the right hire for this roster, and it's paying off in mid January.
There's no doubt that New York will be a playoff team come April, and they'll likely be either the No. 1 or No. 2 seed in the Metropolitan Division. But the postseason is all that matters in The Big Apple, and another first-round exit will be unacceptable for a team that's as good as the 2023-24 NY Rangers.
