Rangers Week Ahead highlighted by MSG finale amid home hot streak
The New York Rangers play their final home game of the 2025-26 season Wednesday night against the Buffalo Sabres, hoping a big finish in April wipes away some of the frustrations of the first six months.
New York’s 8-1 rout of the playoff-contending Washington Capitals on Sunday gave the Blueshirts a 5-1-0 record in the first six games of the seven-game homestand that wraps up the Garden portion of their schedule. Third-year forward Will Cuylle led the way with his first NHL hat trick — and got into his second fight in as many days. He’s the first Rangers player to have a hat trick and a fighting major since Bob Brooke did it on Nov. 20, 1985.
It was the fifth game during the stretch that the Rangers led by at least three goals. Contrast that to the first five home games this season, when they managed a combined total of two goals and were shut out three times. Fourteen of the 18 skaters had at least one point.
The black cloud that seemed to be following the Rangers around most of the season has blown away – replaced by sunshine, blue skies and a team that’s playing free and loose, having fun and piling up wins. Adding more youth to the lineup in the last couple of weeks helped immeasurably – kids like Adam Sykora, Drew Fortescue, Jaroslav Chmelar, and Dylan Garand keep playing like they belong in the NHL. Others who were already here, including Gabe Perrault (who had hit first NHL hat trick in New York’s 4-1 win against another playoff contender, the Detroit Red Wings) and Noah Laba, continue to grow their games.
“I feel like last year we were fighting for a playoff spot all the way until the end. I think this year we’ve kind of know we’re out of a playoff spot for a bit — so, I think — you know, just kind of accepting that and trying to make the best of the situation,” Cuylle said after his hat trick. “There’s a lot to play for and just try to make the best of the opportunity you have.”
Admittedly, the late surge came after the Rangers were eliminated from the playoff race. But Blueshirts fans must be enjoying the kind of hockey they’ve seen for the past couple of weeks after watching their team struggle at home for most of the season.
Who’s Hot
This was the kind of week the Rangers waited for from Adam Fox. He scored one goal and set up two more on Sunday, giving him eight points (two goals, six assists) in four games — and 50 points (eight goals, 42 points) in 51 games this season, extending his point streak to seven games. Makes you wonder what the season could have been like if Fox hadn’t missed 27 games with injuries.
Who’s Not
Laba largely missed out on the scoring in a week that saw New York pile up 18 goals; his only point was an assist on Sykora’s goal Sunday. He did get into his first NHL fight, however on Sunday against Washington forward Brandon Duhaime.
Rangers lookahead this week includes …
The home finale, followed by the opener of a three-game, season-ending road trip.
Buffalo Sabres at Rangers (April 8, 7 p.m., MSG/TNT/TruTV/HBO Max)
The Sabres are assured of making the playoffs for the first time in 15 years, but they’ll come to the Garden desperately needing a win, since they continue to battle the Tampa Bay Lightning and Montreal Canadiens for first place in the Atlantic Division. It’s something few could envision six months ago, when Buffalo opened its season with a 4-0 home loss to the Rangers.
But the Sabres won the rematch 5-2 at the Garden on Jan. 8, and are 4-0-2 in their past six visits to MSG.
If history matters, this might be the perfect spot to give 40-year-old Jonathan Quick what could be his final NHL start, assuming he retires at the end of this season. Quick came within 33 seconds of his 66th NHL shutout on Saturday, coming off his second injury absence of the season. Quick hasn’t said whether he wants to play again next season, and the Rangers have Garand waiting in the wings to back up Igor Shesterkin. The current oldest goaltender in the League is 8-4-0 with a 2.02 goals-against average and a .916 save percentage in 12 career decisions against Buffalo.
Rangers at Dallas Stars (April 11, 5 p.m., MSG)
The Stars are locked into a first-round playoff series against the Minnesota Wild, but they’re battling for home ice in the opening round, so they figure to be charged up when the Rangers come to town for a late-afternoon contest that begins New York’s three-game road trip to close out the 2025-26 schedule.
The Rangers and Stars haven’t faced each other since Vladislav Gavrikov’s overtime goal gave New York a 3-2 win at the Garden on Dec. 2. The Rangers are 3-0-1 in their past four games against the Stars, and Shesterkin is a big reason for that success. He’s 7-1-1 against Dallas after earning the win at the Garden in December, with a 2.34 GAA and .929 save percentage.
Another Rangers player with impressive career numbers against Dallas is center Vincent Trocheck. His assist in that win at the Garden gave him 30 points (12 goals, 18 assists) in 29 games.
The Rangers must shut down the League’s most prolific power play to complete the season sweep. Dallas enters the week first in the NHL with 67 PPGs and second with a 28.9 success rate.
