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The New York Rangers can't wait for the 2025-26 season to begin. That's because they are ready to put the nightmare they went through last year behind them. Much was expected of the Rangers when they started the season and several observers expected them to become a prime Stanley Cup contender.
However, the Rangers did not even make the playoffs last year and head coach Peter Laviolette was fired at the end of the season. He has been replaced by Mike Sullivan and the former two-time Stanley Cup winner with the Pittsburgh Penguins is determined to make significant changes with the team that enables them to get off to a solid start and sustain it throughout the year.
He has been getting to know each player on the team in the offseason and he has also been in conversation with general manager Chris Drury on how to best deploy his players.
One of the key players is veteran Mika Zibanejad, who has manned the center position throughout his 14-year NHL career, that includes nine with the Rangers. However, Zibanejad is likely moving to right wing with J.T. Miller playing center on the Rangers second line.
Zibanejad has been an outstanding all-around center for the Rangers. He has had eight consecutive seasons with 20 goals or more, and that included a high of 41 goals in 2019-20 and a 39-goal season in 2022-23.
Moving to right wing could help Zibanejad and Rangers
Zibanejad has been a consistent producer for the Rangers and there is no doubt how well he sees the game in the offensive zone. However, there are indications that he is slowing down as an all-around performer.
A center's responsibility on the defensive side of the ice are nearly as important as they are on the offensive side. Zibanejad finished the season with a minus-22 rating and that was alarming. He was plus-15 in 2023-24 and he was plus-30 and plus-24 the two seasons before that.
That statistic is often downplayed by many hockey insiders, but the drop-off in 2024-25 was alarming. Playing right wing will relieve Zibanejad of the large majority of his defensive responsibilities..
Sullivan would not commit to the move of Zibanejad to center, but he did say that it has been discussed. “Those are three pretty high-quality centermen,” Sullivan said. “I think it's going to play itself out, but certainly the conversations I've had with Mika to this point I would envision us exploring keeping Mika with J.T.”
