The New York Rangers lost to the Ottawa Senators 8-4 on home ice on Wednesday night. They have lost five in a row and eight of their last nine, sitting in last place in the Eastern Conference. After another embarrassing loss, Rangers head coach Mike Sullivan was less than pleased.
“Listen, we've gone through a rash of emotions,” Sullivan said, per Dan Rosen of NHL.com. “There's been tons of anger. We've run through the gamut of emotions here, trying to right this thing and get it going in the right direction. We'll continue to try to solve it. There's no easy answers. We've got to work hard. We've got to work together, we've got to stick together, we've got to stay together, and we've got to compete together. And that's what we're going to do.”
The Rangers brought Sullivan in after a long run as the Pittsburgh Penguins head coach to avoid this exact situation. Peter Laviolette was fired after a disastrous season last year, but they are poised for an even worse one this year. The Blueshirts were down 4-0 after the first period on Wednesday, further digging a hole that may be impossible to get out of.
This abysmal season is likely the end of multiple eras of Rangers hockey. Artemi Panarin will almost certainly be traded at the upcoming deadline. The seven-year deal he signed in free agency took them out of a rebuild and set them on a competitive course. But with that deal ending, he is likely gone.
Rangers general manager Chris Drury is on one of the hottest seats in the entire league. Some of his disastrous trades, including the acquisition of JT Miller and the departure of Jacob Trouba, have been much maligned. Despite his local ties and stint as New York's captain, he has not been beloved as the GM.
