Very few things went right for the New York Rangers last season. Key players took steps back. Former captain and now ex-Ranger Jacob Trouba and general manager Chris Drury disputed until Trouba requested a trade. Jess Rubenstein, a veteran NHL scout, detailed what went wrong to The Hockey News.
“It took almost six months until Trouba finally agreed to a trade. How that trade was mishandled proved to be the difference-maker in terms of Drury ruining his team’s season,” Rubenstein said. “The rest of the locker room was eyewitness to the public humiliation of Trouba, not only was he the team leader but one who the players both liked and respected.
Now that Trouba is with the Anaheim Ducks and the nightmarish 2024-25 season is over, the Rangers can start fresh. Two players in particular make for intriguing candidates to bounce back next season. Both have impressed in the past, and, while last season was a disappointment, they have plenty of room to return to form in 2025-26.
Mika Zibanejad Needs Big Season with Rangers
Perhaps no other player in the NHL is due for a bounce back more than Mika Zibanejad. The former 91-point forward scored below 70 points for the first time in five seasons with just 20 goals and 42 assists for 62 points. While these numbers aren’t bad in their own right, it’s important to note that Zibanejad has five years left on his eight-year contract making $8.5M per season.
A fresh start this season might be just what Zibanejad needs. Unfortuantely, the Rangers traded his long-term line mate Chris Kreider this offseason. Daily Faceoff has Zibanejad on the second line alongside J.T. Miller and Will Cuylle. Cuylle is a solid winger while Miller is just one season removed from an impressive 103 point campaign. A bounce back seems inevitable for Zibanejad.
Igor Shesterkin Will Return to Form
If any other goaltender put up a .906 save percentage and 2.86 GAA, they’d be considered a good goaltender. Those numbers, however, are not acceptable for a goaltender making a whopping $11.5M per season. While Shesterkin did struggle with injuries last season, he didn’t look like himself in the games that he played.
Shesterkin has shown he’s one of the league’s best on multiple occasions. All he needs now is a fresh start with a new mentality.
The biggest thing going for the former Vezina-winner is coaching. Mike Sullivan, former head coach of the Pittsburgh Penguins, joins the Rangers with plenty of goaltending experience. He helped mold Marc-Andre Fleury into a proven winner. He made Matt Murray a two-time Cup champ. Now, Sullivan enters a team with an elite goaltender ready to bounce back.
His priority, however, involves building a team-based culture. “As we all know, talent alone doesn’t win championships. Teams win championships,” he stated during his introductory press conference. “I think that’s going to be our challenge from day one, is to become a team in the true sense of the word. I can’t really comment on what’s evolved here in the past. All I can speak to is what we can potentially build here moving forward.”
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