It’s no secret that the 2024-25 season has not been kind to the New York Rangers. For the first time in years, the Blueshirts are on the outside looking in for a playoff berth with just over a month left in the season.
And as The Athletic’s Arthur Staple speculated shortly after the NHL trade deadline, the roster could look quite a bit different next year — regardless of how the last 18 regular-season games go.
“The in-season work is done. That doesn’t mean there isn’t more work to do. In fact, for the Rangers to return to the team they’ve been the last three years — two Eastern Conference finals, determined buyers at the deadline — the work probably gets harder for [general manager Chris] Drury,” Staple wrote.
The hockey insider continued: “For any sort of flexibility, the campaign Drury began last June with the waiving of Barclay Goodrow has to continue. It means renewing that November text to see if anyone wants [Chris] Kreider, whose season has been compromised by a variety of injuries. Failing to find a trade might mean considering a buyout.
“It means seeing if Mika Zibanejad, despite his rejuvenated play since JT Miller arrived, would be willing to waive his no-move clause to find a new home — and finding a team to take on five more years of that buyout-proof contract.”
Kreider has two years remaining on his contract with a $6.5 million cap hit, while Zibanejad carries an $8.5 million AAV through 2029-30 along with a full no-movement clause.
It would certainly be interesting if Drury moved on from two of the most important pieces of the core in Kreider and Zibanejad over the summer. But for the 31-27-6 Rangers, it’s clear that something needs to change, especially as management will be strapped tight to the salary cap ahead of the 2025-26 season.
Rangers battling for their playoff lives as stretch run heats up
As it stands, New York is just two points back of the Ottawa Senators for the final wildcard berth in the Eastern Conference, and six back of the New Jersey Devils for third place in the Metropolitan Division.
But after a return to form in the month of February, the group is struggling yet again; the Rangers have lost three games in a row, including a couple of crushing defeats to the Sens and Columbus Blue Jackets over the weekend.
It’s going to take a herculean effort for this team to sneak in over the last 18 games, and Kreider and Zibanejad are going to be critical pieces of that quest.
With the conference continuing to be a logjam — there are six playoff-hopeful teams all within five points in the standings — the most likely scenario is that New York misses the postseason for the first time since 2020-21.
If that happens, it might be time for Drury to consider a retool, and that could lead to a couple of heart and soul forwards in Kreider and Zibanejad getting a change of scenery.
New York will continue the playoff push over a three-game road trip that begins against the Jets in Winnipeg on Tuesday and continues in Minnesota on Thursday and Columbus on Saturday night.
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