The New York Rangers want to be back contending for the Stanley Cup next season, and on paper, they have a roster that looks talented enough to at least get into the playoffs. They have already made some moves off the ice to help prepare for next season, the biggest being hiring Mike Sullivan to be the next head coach. However, it will be on the players to perform up to a higher standard than they did this season. In this piece, we are going to look at three players who must have bounce-back seasons if the Rangers want to become contenders again.
Mika Zibanejad
One of, if not the most disappointing player on the team this season was Mika Zibanejad. It was only a few seasons ago when he was a consistent 30-40 goal scorer and would always average over a point-per-game throughout the season. Something changed at the start of the 2023-24 season, and his play began to decline rapidly. He went from scoring 39 goals and 91 points the previous season to just 26 goals and 72 points. He followed it up with even worse numbers this season, with 21 goals and 62 points in 82 games played. His lack of offensive production has not gone unnoticed by this fanbase, and most of them would like to see him get traded this offseason. However, he has a full no-movement clause in his contract until the 2029-30 season, so unless he asks for a trade, Zibanejad won’t be leaving New York anytime soon.
While it is hard to find something positive to take away from this season, one could be that his play improved tremendously after J.T. Miller arrived. Zibanejad was put on Miller’s right wing, and he flourished in that role. He had 11 goals and 22 assists in 32 games after the trade, and he looked like a better player. If he is going to be here next season, perhaps it is best if he stays on the wing, as it gives him less defensive responsibilities and allows him to focus on shooting the puck more, which he needs to do since he has an elite shot when he wants to use it. Whether fans like him or not, Zibanejad is most likely going to be here next season and will still be relied upon to be a top offensive player, so he needs to have a bounce-back season.
Alexis Lafreniere
Another player who had a disappointing offensive year was Alexis Lafreniere. He was coming off a season in which he finally showed some of the potential that got him drafted first overall. He scored 28 goals and 57 points during the 2023-24 regular season and followed it up with eight goals and 14 points in the playoffs. He got off to a good start this season, which earned him a seven-year extension with the Rangers, but ever since he signed the deal, he just hasn’t been the impact player many thought he would be after the breakout season he had. He finished the season with 17 goals and 45 points in 82 games played, and that is not good enough for a player who is now going to be making $7.45 million for the next seven years.
His line with Artemi Panarin and Vincent Trocheck didn’t have the same magic that they did last season, and when that didn’t work, he was moved around the lineup, but nothing seemed to stick. Going into next season, Sullivan is going to have to find a role for Lafreniere and a line that gets the most out of him. Also, it should finally be time for him to get permenant time on the top power-play unit because he just hasn’t gotten it so far in his career, and he is one of the better five-on-five point getters on the team, so giving him that extra time on the man advantage could be the key to unlocking more from him going into next season.
K’Andre Miller
The Rangers’ defensive core is not one of the best in the league and has not been for quite some time. While they have Adam Fox, they don’t have another player on the team right now who could be seen as a legit top pairing player. The only one who has the potential to be that player is K’Andre Miller, and he is coming off a very poor season. Two seasons ago, he showed some great progress in his game, both offensively and defensively. He scored nine goals and 43 points in 79 games played in the 2022-23 season. His offense dropped off in the 2023-24 season, with eight goals and 30 points, but what was more concerning was that his defensive game was not as strong either, and some attributed it to him playing with Jacob Trouba. While they were not a good pairing, Miller’s game did not improve after he was moved away from Trouba late last season and this season.
Miller was paired with Fox to start this season, and he looked good for the little bit of time they were together, but Peter Laviolette never gave them a long stretch of games together and opted to put players like Ryan Lindgren and Carson Soucy next to Fox. Miller would mostly be paired with Will Borgen, and while they looked good when Borgen first arrived from Seattle, over the course of the season, they got worse, and Miller looked lost out there. He would make so many mistakes, and you would think that he was a rookie or just never played defense before. If he is not traded this summer and signs a new deal with the Rangers, they are going to need him to step up his game, as he still has the potential to be Fox’s partner for years to come; he just has to work on his game and come back next season with the mindset that he needs to play better.
There were so many players on the Rangers who did not have good seasons. These three in particular are the ones that need to have bounce-back seasons the most, as they will still be key players on the team going into next season. If they can come back and improve their game, and the rest of the team can move past what happened this season, then the Rangers should be back to contending for a Stanley Cup very soon.
