Top 10 all-time best United States-born players in New York Rangers history
Just in time for Independence Day, it’s a real red, white and blue top-10 list for the New York Rangers.
The best all-time Rangers players born in the United States.
Now, a bit of clarification is needed here. You won’t see Patrick Kane’s name on the list nor Tony Amonte nor Doug Weight nor Jonathan Quick. Each is among the greatest United States-born players in NHL history and each played for the Rangers. But none of them lasted that long on Broadway and each had his most success elsewhere, most notably Kane.
Related: Ranking New York Rangers 1st-round draft picks since 2000
Brian Mullen is a New Yorker through and through. The talented forward grew up in Hell’s Kitchen playing street hockey with his brother, Hockey Hall of Famer Joe Mullen. After playing his first five NHL seasons with the Winnipeg Jets, Brian Mullen was traded to the Rangers and played four season back home beginning in the 1987-88 season. He scored 25, 29 and 27 goals his first three seasons in New York, and then had 19 in 1990-91. In thos eyears, he consistently played on the Rangers top line with center Kelly Kisio and left wing John Ogrodnick
Derek Stepan played his first seven NHL seasons with the Rangers, a solid two-way center who helped them reach the 2014 Stanley Cup Final and three conference finals in his tenure. His most memorable moment was scoring the Game 7 overtime winning goal in the second-round of the 2015 Stanley Cup Playoffs that eliminated the Washington Capitals at a delirious Madison Square Garden. Stepan had two seasons with 20+ goals and finished with 360 points (128, goals, 232 assists) in 515 games with the Rangers.
After winning a gold medal with the Miracle On Ice United States squad in the 1980 Winter Olympics, Mark Pavelich (right) played his first five NHL seasons with the Rangers, totaling 133 goals and 318 points in 341 games with them from 1981-86. He led the Rangers with an NHL career-high 37 goals in 1982-83 and a career-best 82 points the following season. Pavelich also scored five goals against the Hartford Whalers on Feb. 23, 1983, still tied for the Rangers record.
Ryan Callahan played his first eight NHL seasons with the Rangers, beginning in 2006-07. He scored 20+ goals three times, including an NHL career-high 29 in 2011-12, the same season he was named the 26th captain in Rangers history. Callahan played 450 games with the Blueshirts and scored 132 goals and finished with 254 points before being traded to the Tampa Bay Lightning for Martin St. Louis in 2014.
In one of the biggest steals in franchise history, the Rangers acquired Ryan McDonagh from the Montreal Canadiens in a trade for center Scott Gomez on June 30, 2009. The two-way defenseman was a workhorse over eight seasons with the Rangers. He replaced Ryan Callahan as Rangers captain before the 2014-15 season, and was part of three Blueshirts teams that reached the Eastern Conference Final (2012, 2014, 2015) and the 2014 Stanley Cup Final before he was traded to the Tampa Bay Lightning. McDonagh won the Stanley Cup twice with the Lightning after he played 516 games with the Rangers and totaled 238 points (51 goals, 187 assists).
John Vanbiesbrouck is not only one of the greatest U.S.-born goalies in Rangers history, he’s one of the best from the States to play in the NHL. “The Beezer” won 374 games in his career, 19th most all-time in League history and third most of any U.S.-born goalie in the NHL. He had 200 of those wins with the Rangers from 1982-93, fifth most in franchise history. Vanbiesbrouck won the Vezina Trophy as the top NHL goalie in 1985-86 and is also fifth in games played by a Rangers goalie (449).
There’s no recency bias here, Adam Fox is in the midst of a great career with the Rangers. Still only 26, Fox has been a top-five finisher in Norris Trophy voting as top NHL defenseman in each of his five NHL seasons. He won the award in 2020-21 and has 308 points (53 goals, 255 assists) in 357 games. And he’s just entering his prime years.
Chris Kreider enters his 13th NHL season — all with the Rangers — in 2024-25 and has become one of the all-time greatest players in franchise history. Kreider is a nine-time 20+-goal scorer, whose 52 goals in 2021-22 are second most in a single season in Rangers history. He is third all-time in franchise history with 304 goals, second with 110 power-play goals, and 10th with 552 points. He’ also he’s also first 48 goals in 123 Stanley Cup Playoff games, including a memorable natural hat trick in Game 6 of the 2024 Eastern Conference Final when the Rangers rallied to eliminate the Carolina Hurricanes.
2. Mike Richter (Abington, PA)
Mike Richter was the Rangers goalie when they ended a 54-year drought and won the Stanley Cup in 1994. That alone would solidify his standing on this list. But he’s also second in franchise history with 301 wins and 666 games played by a goaltender. His No. 35 is retired by the Rangers and hangs in the rafters at Madison Square Garden.
1. Brian Leetch (Corpus Christi, TX)
Born in Texas, raised in Connecticut, attended college in Massachusetts and starred with the Rangers in New York, Brian Leetch is the greatest United States-born player in franchise history and, arguably, the best Blueshirts player overall. Leetch won the Calder Trophy as NHL rookie of the year in 1988-89, two Norris Trophies as top NHL defenseman (1991-92, 1996-97) and was the first U.S.-born player to win the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP in 1994, when he helped the Rangers win the Stanley Cup. His 981 points are second in Rangers history and his 741 assists are most all-time. Letch’s No. 2 was retired by the Rangers.
