I’ve been following the New York Rangers for almost four decades. I’ve worked for multiple professional sports teams and have advised many more. And in all those years and experiences, without a doubt the 2024-25 New York Rangers season is one of the most disastrous I’ve seen on and off the ice.
Ironically enough, even without winning the Cup for the past 31 years, the Rangers have always been considered one of the model franchises that other organizations try to emulate. Despite what many think and write, James Dolan rarely gets involved in hockey decisions the way other owners do. Resources are always given when a solid case is made for them. This is what most working in this business want from their owners. Autonomy and a blank check.
The only way that style of ownership works though is when you have a great leadership team. Up until this point, I’ve been very much in support of Chris Drury. I don’t agree with every move he’s made, but on the whole I thought he was setting this team up for long-term success. However, this past year bad decision after bad decision has put way too many kinks in the armor of this hockey club.
Those bad decisions have been well covered, so I won’t rehash them here. Instead, I’ll give you my blueprint for how I would fix the Rangers and get them back to competing for Cups again.
Chris Drury gets one more year to clean up his own mess
Many want Drury gone and I don’t blame them, nor would I argue with them. I don’t know enough about the Panarin allegations to know if he did it or not. None of us do. And whatever you think about that whole situation likely comes down to your own experiences and whatever prisms with which you view the world.
With that said, pointing to some generic statement written by a lawyer is corporate gaslighting at its finest. Leaders need to do better and remember no one in this business, even owners, aren’t czars. They are custodians for these clubs until someone else comes along. Fans are the constant and they deserve a little more respect that what this organization showed last week.
Focusing squarely on hockey and not off ice issues, I would give Drury another year to get this club fixed. He got us out of the Trouba contract, the Goodrow contract, and he got assets for Ryan Lindgren. I didn’t think he’d be able to pull off those moves, so I’d give him another year and see if he can right the ship.
The next coach needs to bring accountability & the Box+1 defensive zone system
There is no doubt in my mind that this core took us as far as they could go and many of them need to be sold off for parts. With that said, the Rangers team defense was a total disaster, even after better players on paper were brought in.
Even when they were winning last year, I said this roster could not play man-on-man defense. It was so obvious to me. Being good on the counter and with possession in the OZ obfuscated how bad we were without the puck and no one wanted to listen. This year it was obvious our play with the puck diminished and there weren’t enough wholesale changes to our defensive structure to stop the bleeding of chances. That fell squarely on the shoulders of Laviolette.
The next coach has to simply things in the defensive zone and the Box+1 (zone based system) is as simple as it gets. There also has to be accountability, which really hasn’t been here since Torts helmed the shipped. If you continue to give up on plays or not backcheck, you take a seat. It doesn’t matter who you are.
The core needs a makeover
I love Chris Kreider and I will forever be grateful for his contributions to this hockey club. However, he’s a declining asset. Ditto Mika Zibanejad, whose game disappears when the going gets tough. Both players are still capable of magic and those omg moments always seem to convince every coach to give them long leashes. However, until they’re gone, I’m skeptical we can win with either of those players getting critical minutes.
Up until last week, Panarin was one of the core pieces I wanted to hold on to. Point per game players don’t grow on trees and he’s answered the bell in the playoffs for a variety of coaches and systems. However, those allegations aren’t going anywhere and who knows what will come out next. The Rangers have to put him on the market and see what the return might be.
The Rangers need to trade for a 1LD and acquire or sign a 3C
I’ve been saying this for years and I’ll say it again. Until we get a top left-handed defensemen to play with Fox and a 3C that can play two-way hockey, who can take tough matchups in the defensive zone, I don’t think we can win a cup. Some combination of Chris Kreider, Mika Zibanejad, Artemi Panarin, Brett Berard, K’Andre Miller, and Brennan Othmann should be able to yield us these things.
Overall, while the vibes around the Rangers are about as low as they’ve been in 20+ years, there’ still good pieces here for the organization to build around. JT Miller and Vinny Trocheck are a solid 1-2 punch down the middle. There’s depth on the wing and the right side of our defense. Igor is Igor. A few moves here and there and we should be back to competing for cups.
