New York Rangers’ roller-coaster 2024-25 season hits halfway mark
With 41 games in the books, the New York Rangers have officially hit the halfway point of what has been a roller coaster of a season thus far. They currently hold a 19-20-2 record, good for 40 points and seventh place in the Metropolitan Division, and sit four points shy of a wild-card spot.
After going 12-4-1 in their first 17 games, the Rangers’ season took a complete turn and they finished the calendar year by going 4-15-0.
Looking to right the ship to begin 2025, the Rangers are playing good hockey again. They’ve managed a 3-1-1 record, mostly against solid teams, including a 3-2 overtime win over the New Jersey Devils on Thursday. This improved performance will have to continue if New York has any hopes of returning to the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Here’s the Metropolitan Division standings at the halfway point of 2024-25:
- Washington Capitals – 58 Pts
- New Jersey Devils – 54 Pts
- Carolina Hurricanes – 52 Pts
- Columbus Blue Jackets – 44 Pts
- Pittsburgh Penguins – 44 Pts
- New York Rangers – 40 Pts
- New York Islanders – 39 Pts
- Philadelphia Flyers – 39 Pts
Related: New York Rangers Daily: There’s a chance for Blueshirts, miserable night for Matthews
Rangers midway report: Highlights, lowlights, MVPs, and underperformers
There’s been plenty of ups and downs for the Rangers this season. Here’s a look at some of the highlights and lowlights from the first half, as well as who’s played well, and who’s underperformed.
Highlight: Rangers win four straight, open season 5-0-1
The Rangers opened the regular season firing on all cylinders, winning five of their first six games, and securing a point in each of those six contests. That four-game win streak – with back-to-back victories over the Detroit Red Wings, a 4-1 triumph over the Toronto Maple Leafs, and a 7-2 shellacking of the Montreal Canadiens – also represented the highest of the season thus far.
It was the perfect start to the season for a team labeled a Stanley Cup contender after being eliminated in the 2024 Eastern Conference Final.
Lowlight: Five straight losses leads to downward spiral
After their 12-4-1 start, the Rangers took a nose dive in the form of a season-high five straight losses, beginning with a 3-2 loss to the Calgary Flames after three straight victories. That eventually morphed into a run of 4-15-0 through the end of 2024.
The sharp drop-off led to turmoil throughout the organization — and forced general manager Chris Drury’s hand. He dealt former captain Jacob Trouba to the Anaheim Ducks on Dec. 6 and forward Kaapo Kakko, the No. 2 pick in the 2019 NHL Draft, to the Seattle Kraken less than two weeks later. The locker room was tense, the energy was low, and the losses kept piling up as the Rangers were left searching for answers.
Highlight: Rangers earn huge win over Devils in overtime
The 41st game of the season may turn out to be the most important one for the Rangers. After an uptick in play to start 2025, they matched up against the Devils for the third time in roughly a month. New York lost the first two meetings and was outscored 10-1.
But the Rangers rewrote the story: Sam Carrick scored the unlikely overtime winner to give the Rangers their third win in five games (3-1-1). If New York sneaks into the postseason, this game could very well go down as the season’s turning point.
MVPs: Artemi Panarin, Vincent Trocheck
While it hasn’t been quite the season he had in 2023-24, Artemi Panarin has still been the Rangers’ top performer. He leads the team in goals (17) and points (44), , and continues to play at a point-per-game pace despite his team’s struggles.
Vincent Trocheck, also projected to drop in points this season, has stepped up in a different way. After the Rangers traded Trouba to the Anaheim Ducks, Trocheck noticeably stepped up as a leader for the team, often answering for the Rangers’ poor play and taking accountability for himself and the team. After a bit of a slump, his game has really come on: He has 13 goals, 28 points, and a 60.3 percent face-off win rate.
Underperformers: K’Andre Miller, Chris Kreider
Yes, the team as a whole has struggled, but it’s been an especially tough season for defenseman K’Andre Miller, who had been expected to take a huge step in his development this season. Instead, Miller has seemed to regress and made costly mistakes. He also has seven points and is projected to earn just 14 after tallying 30 last season and 43 in 2022-23. We’ll see if he can turn it around in the second half.
Chris Kreider has dealt with injuries this season, including an upper-body problem that landed him on injured reserve this week, but that doesn’t change the fact that he’s underperformed when he’s been in the lineup. He does have 13 goals, good for second on the team — but he has just two assists, giving him 15 points in 34 games. He’s projected to earn a mere 32 points this season, which would be his lowest point total since 2020-21 when he played just 50 games. It would be the lowest output of his career in seasons in which he’s played at least 58 games. He needs to return to the lineup refocused and ready to play.
More About:New York Rangers News
Read This Next
