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For 40 years, Sam Rosen was the voice of the NY Rangers’ color commentary. He had a basketful of curated catchphrases and a never-ending palpable love of the team and the sport of hockey. Unfortunately, the Rangers didn’t send him off with a winning season, but at least the final 2 games against the Florida teams ended it on a high note.

Since the end of the season, Coach Peter Laviolette has been fired (expected) along with an associate coach, and GM Chris Drury got a contract extension. That has not gone over well with the fanbase. It is safe to say that if he doesn’t manage to turn the team around next season, he’s done. He’s got a lot to do. First thing he needs to do is give Will Cuyle a new contract and then find a coach that can get this team moving again. Finding new defensive players is key. I expect the core to largely stay the same. The tide turned against Kreider, but we now know that, along with the back spasms, he was playing with vertigo and an injured hand. That explains his dramatic drop in play and raises another flag against Laviolette; why on earth was he still being played so much, even on the 4th line? A healthy Kreider is still a major asset.

Now we’re in the thick of the playoffs. I think there is a good chance a Canadian team could win it (Toronto). And with how Florida is stuffing Tampa Bay, they are no longer going to be underestimated. There are many terrific series going on, with the Devils being the outlier. With the injuries they had in the regular season, they only held on to have 3 more wins than the Rangers. With even more injuries, they are completely outmatched by Carolina. I don’t see them winning a game. Montreal is competing against Washington, but they just can’t close a game. I also predicted a Kings win over the Oilers, but not a sweep, which looks like it is going to happen.

With two games remaining, the Rangers are the only team with no multi-goal comeback wins.

We’ll take any good news these days. The Rangers played the Panthers last night. Went down 1-0 in the first period, then went down 3-1, and rallied back again to win 5-3. It took 81 wins for a multi-game win, but it’s better than zero! The final game of the season is Thursday vs Tampa Bay.

I wrote this title on March 28th after the Rangers blew a lead to the Ducks and lost in OT. That’s how long I’ve meant to write and haven’t mustered up the will for 2 weeks or so. The reason is that even when the Rangers have won, which has been few and far between, there still isn’t much to praise. They haven’t won more than three games in a row since November, never mounting more than two and almost always going on losing streaks after winning.

It’s been a terrible season from the start, the worst since 2017 when it was so bad the rebuild was announced. I’m not sure if a full rebuild will happen; there aren’t enough resources to do so, but a lot needs to change. I’m not sure if it feels so bad because the season was so bad or if it’s amplified because of the whiplash from finishing first in the league last season.

The problems were never fixed. Terrible defense amplified by out of control turnovers. Slow starts so that the game was frequently turned into a game of catch up. With two games remaining, the Rangers are the only team with no multi-goal comeback wins. The only team highlight is that they have the most short-handed goals.

The collapse of both special teams outweighs that nice stat. The powerplay has disappeared, something like 27th in the league. While the penalty kill remained strong for a while, it has also fallen apart in the last 6 weeks. The amount of penalties they get is a problem that’s been around for years, but the great PK has kept it from being detrimental. Last season, they won many games (many come from behind victories) because of the top 5 special teams. That’s gone, so here is the losing record of a season.

Last season was a special one. Seven players had career seasons. All of them are down about 20 points. Panarin has been the best and Kreider is the worst, down close to 50 points. That’s a massive reduction in team points. Kakko was one of those players. He was traded in December with something like 17 total points. In his first month with Seattle, he scored 16 points. That’s an eyebrow raising stat.

The New York Rangers have had a problem developing young players for decades now. That’s a management issue that should have been addressed ages ago. We have some promising rookies, and it’s vital that they get the game time and guidance to play at the NHL level. Kakko was squandered, and Lafreniere hasn’t improved. Cuyle has had a fantastic sophomore season. Rempe is improving. Edstrom was also making strides, but a serious injury ended his season at 51 games. Berard, Perreault, and Othmann are the future and must be treated as such. Schneider is our most promising defenseman, and I think Jones has potential, but the disrespect for his abilities all season has me thinking he’ll be moved. Miller deserved to be pulled frequently, not him. In fact, K’Andre’s drop in play has been so bad that I don’t think he will be a Ranger next year.

Quite a few players were moved, including Trouba, Lindgren, and Chytil, but not much improved. The biggest asset is the return of JT Miller, who has played well and raised Zibanejad’s game. That was a boon as he was having a terrible season, and he has managed to gain some ground. The players picked up in the trades are all middle-of-the-road in skill. Ditching a few is in the cards.

It’s been so sad to watch for so long that watching games hasn’t been fun. The team’s chemistry is so off that when they score a goal, their celebration is muted. It’s like they expect to lose. The attitude is just bizarre. Is it a player issue or a coaching issue? Both? I guess we’ll find out over the off season. How dramatic the changes will be is entirely up in the air. I wouldn’t be surprised to see GM Chris Drury get the boot along with Coach Laviolette..