Paget: Why not the Rangers?
It wasn’t long ago the New York Rangers’ 18-4-1 start to the season appeared to be a fluke.
It wasn’t long ago there was chatter about sitting Igor Shesterkin and handing the reins to Jonathan Quick.
It wasn’t long ago the Blueshirts were widely considered “pretenders,” relying on an unsustainable recipe to which the ingredients would eventually run out.
But with nine games remaining in the 2023-2024 NHL season, the Rangers just keep winning. They keep silencing the critics. Yet they keep being counted out.
Perhaps that’s because the aftertaste of last season’s first-round exit lingers with some. But if anything, this year’s Rangers are reminiscent of the 2022 post-deadline rendering, not last year’s.
Much like two seasons ago, New York is playing its best hockey at the right time. The Blueshirts are 9-2-0 since the trade deadline and 19-4-1 since the All-Star break. As a result, they sit atop the NHL standings and in the driver’s seat for the Presidents’ Trophy — and thus the Metropolitan Division title — for the first time since the 2014-2015 season.
Akin to the 2015 squad that was ousted in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals, this year’s Rangers have made it clear they’re itching to get over the hump after taking their fair share of playoff lumps. And unlike the 2022 club that enjoyed a rather miraculous run to the Conference Finals, this group is no longer a young, upstart bunch fresh off a rebuild.
So — 30 years removed from a Presidents’ Trophy-winning season that ended in their most recent Stanley Cup — why not the Rangers?
Sure, the story would write itself, but there’s reason — beyond just the sake of the narrative — to believe that a storybook ending is attainable.
Most importantly, the Blueshirts’ recent defensive play has risen to a level we’ve seldom seen in the past few years. Since the trade deadline, New York’s 2.72 all-situations xGA/60 ranks seventh in the NHL. The Rangers have generally avoided extended defensive-zone shifts, and they’ve done it without Jacob Trouba, and even Ryan Lindgren and Erik Gustafsson at times.
This may prove to be a blessing in disguise. Not only should Trouba be fully healthy come playoff time, but K’Andre Miller and Braden Schneider have also been sharp as ever and proven capable of handling increased responsibilities. Additionally, the performances of Zac Jones and Chad Ruhwedel should evoke confidence in their abilities to step in and hold down the fort if necessary.
Regardless, it feels as if any defensive miscues over the last two months have been nullified by Shesterkin, who has returned to his Vezina Trophy form since the All-Star break. Over his past 17 starts, Shesterkin owns a 2.22 GAA, a .933 SV% and a league-leading 16.26 GSAA. And he’s always risen to the occasion in the playoffs.
Strangely, the concerns around this year’s Rangers — if any — arise up front. Artemi Panarin’s first career 100-point season has been magical, but his regular-season production has never been in question. After last year’s no-show against the New Jersey Devils, it’s Panarin’s playoff performance that will shape how his season is remembered.
With the consistency to which the line of Panarin, Alexis Lafreniere and Vincent Trocheck has generated offense, though, there’s little reason to believe the 32-year-old is headed for another disappointing encore.
New York’s top line ranks first among all NHL trios this season in 5-on-5 goals and 5-on-5 expected goals (xG). They’re of the variety of dynamic triumvirates the Rangers have so often lacked and been tasked with shutting down at this time of year.
On the other hand, the Blueshirts’ more proven playoff performers — Mika Zibanejad and Chris Kreider — have largely struggled to produce at the level we’ve become accustomed to in the regular season. But as long as the inseparable pair can elevate their game come mid-April, the recent frustration will dissipate into a distant memory.
Behind the bench, Peter Laviolette and his staff continue to press all the right buttons. Whether it be the power-play timeout against the Colorado Avalanche on Thursday or the shrewd late-game defensive-zone deployment when protecting a lead, the Rangers’ brass has been operating with an element of strategy that’s been missing in previous years.
So, what’s stopping the Rangers?
A strong finish would set them up to avoid the Tampa Bay Lightning in the first round and likely face the Washington Capitals or Detroit Red Wings. Looking ahead, the Carolina Hurricanes would certainly represent a less-than-ideal matchup, but the Blueshirts have had their number. Don’t look now, but the Florida Panthers and Boston Bruins have been trending in the wrong direction lately.
Looking at the Western Conference, New York has proven it can play with the re-loaded Colorado Avalanche. The Vegas Golden Knights still haven’t found their footing. And I’m not sure there are any other truly fear-inducing opponents.
This begs the question: Why has so much of the Rangers’ season been clouded with skepticism?
I’m not sure I have an answer. The Rangers certainly don’t have one. Because they’ve surely been asking themselves the same question I’ve been pondering all season: Why not us?
Why. Not. The Rangers.