Rangers just one of several struggling former contenders

The Ducks were a popular Cup pick but sit three points out of last place

The Rangers aren’t alone in their battle to remain relevant as contenders – all around the league many of the clubs we’re used to seeing play deep into the spring are having major issues just like the Blueshirts.

Perhaps the most disappointing team of all this year is the Ducks, who thought they had attained an unstoppable mix of size and speed to go with a mobile young defense and multiple stellar options in goal. Instead, Ryan Getzlaf has two goals in 30 games and Anaheim sits just three points out of the cellar.

In the Eastern Conference, the Penguins’ blockbuster trade for Phil Kessel did nothing to help and the club fired coach Mike Johnston earlier this month. Pittsburgh’s decline has continued over several seasons and it’s at the point that there’s a reasonable case to be made for the Penguins to – gasp – trade one of Sidney Crosby or Evgeni Malkin.

Even the mighty Blackhawks, who have been the most successful franchise of the new millennium, have taken a major hit after jettisoning several key players due to cap concerns during the offseason.

Then there are clubs like Nashville and Tampa Bay that appeared to be on the cusp, but are both hovering on the edge of the playoff line and look nothing like the juggernauts most thought they’d become after outstanding 2014-2015 seasons.

And frustrations are highest of all in Columbus, where the Blue Jackets also thought they were about to join that group but instead are at the front of the line for a ticket to the Auston Matthews lottery.

Of course it’s still very early and despite their struggles, most of these teams remain just a few points from their usual spots atop their respective conferences, but still, the gap between the batch of regular contenders and the rest of the pack has narrowed.

In some ways, this is just the cyclical nature of the NHL – and really that parity is one of the league’s greatest strengths.

As teams like the Stars, Panthers and Islanders emerge as the next wave, the old guard will have to adapt quickly or whither away to the depths of the standings.

Like nearly all of the aforementioned teams, some of the Rangers’ problems are easily correctible, and some are not. Getting a veteran group to recommit to team defense shouldn’t be particularly difficult. But reversing the aging process for Dan Girardi and Marc Staal isn’t going to be easy.

Another big part of the problem is that as contending teams evolve, their identities can be slow to shift with them. The Blueshirts were a five-man shot-blocking machine with an impenetrable goalie at the height of the John Tortorella era, and then became a lightning quick transition team under Alain Vigneault’s watch. But with several of the players that were core to those clubs long gone, it’s time to ask: what are the Rangers now?

The same can be asked of many other teams that have suffered similar losses, and it can be a very difficult question to answer. For some, the status quo will eventually work itself out. But for others, it’s time to adapt or die.

The Rangers need look no further than the LA Kings and Boston Bruins for proof that it can be done. Both clubs missed the playoffs last season after years of contending status, and each made significant moves in the offseason to bounce right back into the mix. That’s the model the Blueshirts must follow before it’s too late.