Rangers’ Jacob Trouba headlines Metropolitan Division bounce-back candidates
Even though the New York Rangers won the Presidents’ Trophy and reached the Eastern Conference Final last season, that doesn’t mean there’s no room for improvement in 2024-25. Individually, there are several players looking to rebound after not quite playing to expected level a year ago.
Of course, that rings true for all teams in the League, including each of their seven rivals in the Metropolitan Division. Each team has bounce-back candidates on its roster, ones who could make a big difference this season
Let’s start with the Rangers. Mika Zibanejad, for sure fits in this category. He scored 13 fewer goals and had 19 less points year over year from 2022-23. Plus his 5v5 production was a big concern. So, he’s a major bounce-back candidate.
To lesser extents, forwards Kaapo Kakko and Filip Chytil, and defenseman K’Andre Miller fit the bill here, too.
But the Rangers player most in need of a bounce-back season is their captain Jacob Trouba. Easily their most criticized player from last season, the defenseman needs to show marked improvement after a fall off in his play during the regular season and an ugly go of it in the 2014 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Trouba is also set up for a nice rebound this season. All of those trade rumors that he downplayed at the start of camp? You can bet a proud player like Trouba will use that as motivation for a a better season in 2024-25.
The 30-year-old also knows that the curtain is dropping soon for this group on Broadway, stating to the media on Thursday, “In all likelihood, this will probably be the last crack for this core. I don’t think that’s a secret by any means.”
Certainly that’s true for Trouba, who likely will be dealt at the end of this season to create much-needed room under the salary cap.
Motivation also comes in the form of knowing that he didn’t play to his usual standard when it mattered most. Trouba was on the ice for 17 of the 35 goals against the Carolina Hurricanes and Florida Panthers in the 2024 playoffs. That sum is too much for a core player on this roster earning $8 million annually. He also accrued 11 penalties, the most of any skater in the postseason.
It remains to be seen if he will stick with long-time partner Miller on the second defense pair or if the Rangers will shuffle the deck and replace him with Braden Schneider.
Trouba is a player who is extremely valuable as leader, physical presence on the ice and key penalty killer. He’s also generated offense in the past. So, he remains a big part of this group, even if he skates with Zac Jones on the third pair.
Simply, Trouba is set up to rebound this season. And if he does, all the better for the Rangers.
Related: Most hyped rookie in Metro doesn’t play for Rangers
Bounce-back candidates for Rangers rivals in Metropolitan Division
The Rangers are far from the only team within their division that have key players looking to bounce back after downturns in 2023-24. Let’s take a look at each Metro team in alphabetical order.
Martin Necas, Carolina Hurricanes
Necas signed a two-year, $13 million contract extension based on potential expectations, but the cart can’t come before the horse. The 25-year-old Czech speedster has to perform more consistently for a Hurricanes squad that mortgaged its future salary capital in him and Seth Jarvis. The difference between these two forwards is that Jarvis took off last season and Necas took a step back.
Now, Necas did rack up 71 points in 2022-23 but dropped off 18 points last season, falling to 53. So, the skill and potential are there. He then asked for a trade before landing a hefty raise to $6.5 million annually.
Necas is one of Carolina’s most talented forwards, but for all his buzz against the Rangers in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, he often felt like a non-threat with the puck for his lack of finish. That’s got to change, especially now that he’s Carolina’s fifth highest-paid player and the talent thinned out this offseason with the departures of forwards Jake Guentzel, Teuvo Teravainen and Stefan Noesen.
Kent Johnson, Columbus Blue Jackets
A shoulder injury in late February did set back his development, but Johnson’s 2023-24 season to that point was lackluster and certainly a serious regression from his previous campaign when he had 40 points in 79 games as a rookie the season before.
Last season, the 21-year-old forward skated in 42 games with Columbus, recording just 16 points (six goals, 10 assists). He also played 10 games with Cleveland in the American Hockey League.
Here in 2024-25, the Blue Jackets desperately need Johnson to bounce back and take major strides forward. Coming off two straight last-place finishes in the Metro, the Blue Jackets are reeling from the tragic death of Johnny Gaudreau. Plus they traded away Patrik Laine.
The organization committed to Johnson with a three-year contract this summer. The hope is that Johnson will regain form and play up to the level that led him to be the No. 5 overall pick in the 2021 draft.
Timo Meier, New Jersey Devils
It was Timo time in New Jersey until it wasn’t. Meier missed 13 games last season and finished with 14 fewer points than the season prior, when he scored 40 goals and had 66 points split between the San Jose Sharks and Devils.
One hall pass was the adjustment period from carrying the responsibility of winning games through a fire sale teardown. The second hall pass is that the Devils regressed as a whole and were crushed by injuries after a collective breakout campaign in 2022-23.
There are no more passes for Meier. He is New Jersey’s highest-paid forward, averaging $8.8 million per season, so he needs to play like it. Especially if the Devils want to hop back into playoff contention this season and beyond. The 27-year-old must clean up that minus-28 and get back over that 30-goal mark, at least, this season.
Ilya Sorokin, New York Islanders
Anders Lee was a candidate here, too, but Sorokin is the most important Islanders player and he struggled badly for stretches of 2023-24. Towards the end of the season, he lost the net to veteran backup Semyon Varlamov as the Islanders made a late push for the playoffs. Worse, Sorokin started only one of five games in the first-round series loss to the Hurricanes, and was pulled in his only appearance.
Sorokin ended last season with the worst goals-against average of his NHL career (3.01) and his save percentage dropped 15 points to .909, also worst in his career.
He then had back surgery this summer before entering the first season of a lucrative eight-year, $66 million contract. And he hasn’t practiced in training camp yet.
That’s not a great beginning for a bounce-back season. But let’s keep in mind, Sorokin is an elite NHL goalie. The 29-year-old did finish the 2022-23 season as a Vezina Trophy finalist, posting a 31-22-7 record, with a 2.34 GAA, .924 save percentage, and League-leading six shutouts.
As long as he’s healthy, it’s fair to think last season was a blip for Sorokin. Though Varlamov is a solid option in goal, Sorokin must be their No. 1 if they have any chance to making a run this season.
Sean Couturier, Philadelphia Flyers
Couturier does so much for the Flyers as an excellent center and two-way player. But if they’re going to be a playoff team this season, Couturier must regain his scoring touch, too.
The 31-year-old captain of the Flyers had just 11 goals and 38 points last season, not up to his 30-goal, 70-point past. However, that can’t be viewed in a vacuum considering Couturier missed nearly two full seasons because of back surgery.
He should be in a prime spot to have a nice rebound campaign in 2024-25 after playing a healthy season finally last year.
Evgeni Malkin, Pittsburgh Penguins
Malkin is one of the great players of his generation. He’s a three-time Stanley Cup champion and future Hockey Hall of Famer.
But if the Penguins have any hope of returning to the playoffs after missing the past two seasons, Malkin must produce more than the 67 points he had last season. The perennial point-per-game player must get back to that level again. Though at age 38, perhaps that’s too big an ask.
Malkin is two goals shy of 500 in the NHL, two assists away from 800 and four points from reaching 1,300. Those are special number for a special player. But it’s how he biunces back this season that the Penguins are most focused on right now.
Alex Ovechkin, Washington Capitals
Ovechkin doesn’t necessarily fit the bill for bounce-back season. The 39-year-old’s fifteen-game goal drought last season was a blooper. This is a player who time and time again scores heat-seeking missiles that defy an athlete’s aging process. He totaled 31 tallys and has dipped and surged in the last few seasons.
In 2016-2017 he posted 33 goals, then followed that with 49 in 2017-18, 51 in 2018-19, and 48 in the shortened 2019-20 season After that, he dipped to 24 goals in the 2021 bubble. The same conversation took place following that season, as 24 goals seemed incredibly low for “The Great Eight.”
He put any doubts to rest the following year with another trademark 50-goal season in 2021-22 and 42 goals in 2022-23.
Supporting Ovi this season is a better supporting cast of NHL players, including offseason additions Pierre Luc-Dubois, Andrew Mangiapane, and Jakob Chychrun. He is projected to play with Dylan Strome who is exponentially maturing (67 points in 2023-2024), and Mangiapane.
Maybe he doesn’t have gas in the tank for another 50-goal season, but the record shows he can recover and produce big again.
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