There are a lot of positives to this Rangers season

The Rangers, for all intents and purposes, are out of the playoff picture. Making up (four back plus Boston’s two in hand) with seven games left is virtually impossible in the loser point era. It’s possible, but so is winning the lottery. While many view this season as a disappointment, it wouldn’t be further from the truth. This season is an overwhelming success for the Rangers, and there are many positives to draw from as they look to turn to true competition next season.

The Kids Are Alright

This isn’t The Offspring. The kids are alright on the Rangers, and these are the most important positives. Adam Fox has become one of the best defensemen in the league and is in the Norris conversation. Fox was viewed as a high potential acquisition, but I don’t think anyone expected this. Everything he does is fantastic.

In the same regard, Ryan Lindgren has silenced any doubts that he was riding Fox’s coattails. He almost single-handedly changed the left defense outlook on this team. He’s a true top-four, even without the sexy offensive numbers. He moves the puck well, he’s solid in his own end, and he brings that physical presence that many call for. Between him and K’Andre Miller, left defense will be just fine.

Alexis Lafreniere, now finally with the top line, has started to look like that top pick. On a team with as much top-six talent as the Rangers, all he needed was to be put on the line. Ice time was a concern, and that seems to be coming to an end. The same can be said for Filip Chytil, who has some great P/60 numbers. The numbers suggest more ice time will lead to more production.

Which brings us to Kaapo Kakko. What a turnaround he’s had this season. He went from one of the worst statistical seasons we’ve seen to a true force on both sides of the puck. He’s looked better than solid this season, and the points will come for him.

Overcoming Adversity

This Rangers team was met with more adversity in one season than we saw in the past decade. First the COVID impacts. Mika Zibanejad entered the season with COVID and was a shell of himself until March. The entire coaching staff went down with COVID, and Kris Knoblauch had to take the reigns in a difficult time.

But perhaps the biggest controversy to hit this team was with Tony DeAngelo’s summary expulsion from the team. DeAngelo, who wasn’t playing well through his six games of the season, was supposed to be the PP1 QB. But with him gone, a hole needed to be filled. Adam Fox filled that with ease. His 21 powerplay assists eclipse all of DeAngelo’s powerplay points (3-16-19) from last season. They could have folded, but moved on pretty quickly and easily.

Edit: Forgot about the Artemi Panarin hit piece, where he missed two weeks. That also took its toll on the team. My bad, they are literally sawing off a wall underneath me today and my brain isn’t functioning properly.

This is also the toughest division in hockey this season. The Rangers are 5th in the East Division and out of the playoffs. But they are 14th in the league in points and 6th in the league in goal differential. Their 56 points makes them a playoff team in each of the other three divisions.

Trending Up, Set Up Well

The Rangers are trending up. They have the right youth in place. Their long-term signings, for the most part, are very productive. While this offseason will determine true success, the foundation is set.

The Rangers also are not going to lose anyone important to the 2021 Expansion Draft. Julien Gauthier seems destined to be Seattle bound. He’s got a high ceiling, but he’s already fourth on the RW depth chart, possibly lower depending on who you ask.

Cap management is another key aspect. The Rangers don’t have any cap problems in the immediate future. The big concern is their center depth, given both Zibanejad and Ryan Strome are UFAs after the 2021-2022 season. But even then, they have the money to address their future plans. And don’t kid yourself, the Rangers already have a plan for both.

Offseason is Key

This offseason is key for the Rangers. They can easily screw all of this up with a bad contract or a bad trade. Jeff Gorton has a plan. Even if that plan includes a shiny new toy like Jack Eichel, there is a walkaway point for him as well. There were a lot of positives for the Rangers this season, and it should continue into next. If they follow the plan, that is.