The patch will be featured on all home and away Rangers jerseys, including the centennial sweaters, beginning with their first preseason game against the New Jersey Devils on Sunday. It features the GAME7 logo in blue with white lettering on the right shoulder. The patches will also appear on jerseys sold at Madison Square Garden’s in-arena store locations.

The three-year agreement with GAME7, announced on the same day the Rangers named center J.T. Miller as the 29th captain in franchise history, marks the first time the Blueshirts have brought a brand partner directly onto the jersey in their 100-year history.

Game 7 named the Official Patch Partner of the New York Rangers.

Full press release: https://t.co/HxGAI9LYAh pic.twitter.com/NV7GqzcM9V

— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) September 16, 2025

Messier was the captain of the Rangers team that ended the franchise’s 54-year Stanley Cup drought by defeating the Vancouver Canucks in Game 7 of the 1994 Final – with No. 11 scoring what proved to be the Cup-winning goal in the 3-2 victory at Madison Square Garden. They also won Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Final against the New Jersey Devils at the Garden to reach the Final.

He said the significance of partnering with the Rangers isn’t lost on him, especially in their centennial season.

“For me, the Rangers will always be family, and Madison Square Garden will always feel like home,” Messier said. “To now see GAME 7 — something we built with the same passion and commitment to greatness that defined my years on the ice — become part of the Rangers’ journey is incredibly meaningful. This partnership unites a legendary franchise, the world’s most iconic arena and a brand created to inspire people to rise to their greatest challenges.

“As the Rangers celebrate 100 years, it’s an honor to play a role in connecting the team’s history with its future and to help bring even more unforgettable experiences to fans who have always been at the heart of this organization.”

Rangers to wear sponsor patch for first time in 2025-26

The NHL began allowing teams to wear sponsor patches in 2022-23 as a way for teams to generate revenue. Entering the 2024-25 season, there were nine teams that did not have a jersey sponsor patch. The Utah Hockey Club (now the Utah Mammoth) was the only team without a helmet sponsor last season.

The idea with this patch was to make it look as if it was always a part of the jersey and not just randomly affixed. GAME 7 co-founder Mat Vlasic said the process to finalize the patch was “literally one pass and everyone agreed.

“I fancy myself as somewhat creative, and you want to try multiple things, never want to just have one option. But it literally was that,” he said. “It was the first pass, and that rarely happens. To launch this partnership with Madison Square Garden and bring Mark back home is a defining moment for all of us. Together, we’ll create unforgettable experiences for Rangers fans both on and off the ice.”

To MSG Sports chief operating officer Jamaal Lesane, the relationship between the Rangers and Messier made the deal a perfect fit.

“Our search for a partner that would be so deeply ingrained in both the Rangers and Madison Square Garden led us directly to GAME 7, which we believe is an absolutely perfect fit,” he said. “We have a deep-seated relationship with GAME 7 co-founder and Rangers legend Mark Messier, which makes this such a genuine, natural alignment.

“Mark and his team at GAME 7 have created something special and as our organization embarks on our centennial season, we look forward to continued collaboration for years to come.”

“We are looking forward to the celebration of the Rangers Centennial season – one that will be truly unforgettable for our fans and honors the Rangers’ storied history,” MSG Sports executive chairman and CEO James Dolan said. “This is a special opportunity to recognize the great moments, players, and so much more that has brought us all together for a century of Rangers hockey.”

Something’s in the air… pic.twitter.com/Sxy4YA6lZE

— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) September 15, 2025

Hall of Fame broadcaster Sam Rosen, who retired after last season after a 40-year run as the TV voice of the Rangers, will return to the Garden and serve as Master of Ceremonies for the on-ice portion of select theme nights.

Full list of Centennial Nights. ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/daK6JnllPP

— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) September 15, 2025

Let’s take a look at the eight special theme nights to be held at MSG this season.

Related: Why former Rangers coach told Henrik Lundqvist ‘You’re not the f***ing King!’

Birth of a Franchise: Oct. 20 vs. Minnesota Wild

The Rangers were actually an offshoot of the long-departed New York Americans. The Amerks drew so well that Tex Rickard, who ran the Garden, decided MSG should have its own team. Thus were the Rangers born – they entered the NHL along with the Chicago Black Hawks and Detroit Cougars (now the Red Wings) in the fall of 1926. The fledgling Rangers finished first in their division in 1926-27 and won the Stanley Cup the following season.

With Hall of Famers like Frank Boucher and Bill Cook leading the way, the Rangers were among the League’s most successful teams during their first 15 seasons in the NHL. They won the Cup again in 1933 and took it home for a third time in 1940, when another Hall of Famer, Bryan Hextall, scored the overtime winner in Game 6 of the Final in Toronto.

The Rangers of that era were known as “The Classiest Team in Hockey” – a night at the Garden was an event, with numerous celebrities often in attendance and many fans “dressing to the nines.” This night honors those early teams and their contribution toward building the franchise.

Milestones and Memories: Nov. 8 vs. New York Islanders

Vic Hadfield becoming the first Ranger to score 50 goals in a season. Ed Giacomin and Gilles Villemure sharing the Vezina Trophy. Triple-overtime goals by Pete Stemkowski and Marian Gaborik. And, of course, Mark Messier’s Cup-winning goal in Game 7 of the 1994 Final against the Vancouver Canucks that gave the Rangers their first championship in 54 years.

All these and more will be celebrated when the archrival Islanders make their first visit of the season to the Garden in early November. Don’t be surprised if there’s a mention of the first round of the 1994 playoffs, when the Rangers handed the Isles one of the worst beatings in postseason history, a four-game sweep that saw them outscore their biggest rival 22-3.

Original Six Era (1942-67): Nov. 16 vs. Detroit Red Wings

The Americans went out of business after the 1941-42 season, leaving the NHL with just six teams – none west of Chicago – for the next 25 years. The Rangers roster was decimated by World War II and they didn’t really recover until the mid-1950s, when a new wave of talent led by Hockey Hall of Famers Andy Bathgate and Gump Worsley arrived on the scene.

It’s appropriate that Detroit is the opponent on this night: Bathgate scored one of the most famous goals in Rangers history – a penalty-shot tally against the Red Wings on March 14, 1962, that was the key to getting the Rangers back into the playoffs. One of the most painful memories of that era also came against the Red Wings; Pete Babando’s double-overtime goal in Game 7 of the 1950 Final denied the Rangers another championship.

The New Garden (1967-91): Dec. 13 vs. Montreal Canadiens

The current Madison Square Garden opened midway through the 1967-68 season (the Rangers defeated the Philadelphia Flyers 3-1 in their first game). The opening of the new Garden, with its five levels of colored seats (red, orange, yellow, green and blue), coincided with the rebirth of the Rangers under coach-GM Emile Francis, who got the Blueshirts to the Stanley Cup Final in 1972 (Rangers fans had to watch the Bruins skate around with the Cup after winning Game 6 at MSG).

The first two-plus decades of the “new” Garden also saw the Rangers reach the Final in 1979 (they lost in five games to the Montreal Canadiens after upsetting the Islanders in the Semifinals), the Herb Brooks era, a surprise trip to the Semifinals in 1986 behind Vezina Trophy winner John Vanbiesbrouck, and a first-place finish (in the Patrick Division) in 1989-90 – their first since 1941-42.

Fan Favorites: Jan. 8 vs. Buffalo Sabres

Current Rangers forward Matt Rempe is proof that the most popular Rangers aren’t always the stars. Staten Island native Nick Fotiu was the Rempe of his era – he was beloved by Garden fans for his willingness to stand up for his teammates and hit opponents – and score the occasional goal. He was also renowned for tossing pucks into the stands at the end of warmups.

There also figure to be plenty of “Eddie” cheers for Giacomin, arguably the most popular Rangers goaltender of all time, who died Monday at age 86. Players like Stemkowski, John Davidson, Adam Graves and numerous others whose names still bring back fond memories for Blueshirts faithful can also expect a warm welcome.

Legendary Blueshirts: Jan. 26 vs. Boston Bruins

Want to get an idea of who will be here on this night? Start with Messier, whose No. 11 hangs in the rafters at MSG. Add Graves, Brian Leetch, Mike Richter, Hadfield, Jean Ratelle and Henrik Lundqvist. Then there are those who are no longer with us — Giacomin, Howell, Bathgate and arguably the greatest Blueshirt of them all, Rod Gilbert, who passed away in August 2022.

Hopefully early-era players such as Cook and Boucher are also remembered for their accomplishments despite not having their numbers retired.

Goaltenders: Feb. 5 vs. Carolina Hurricanes

The Rangers have been blessed with elite goaltending for most of their time in the NHL. Dave Kerr not only carried them to the 1940 Cup, he was the second hockey player ever featured on the cover of Time magazine (in March 1938).

Chuck Rayner got the Rangers within one goal of winning the Stanley Cup in 1950, Worsley excelled for the Rangers in the late 1950s and early 1960s, and Giacomin (by himself and then in a tandem with Villemure) was a key to the team’s revival under Francis.

Richter was the first Rangers goaltender to win 300 games and the last to win the Cup. Lundqvist is sixth in NHL history with 459 wins and owns the team record with 64 shutouts. He was succeeded by Igor Shesterkin, who has continued the Rangers tradition of elite goaltending.

The Modern Era (2004-Present): March 5 vs. Toronto Maple Leafs

The Rangers haven’t won the Stanley Cup since play resumed after the 2004-05 lockout, but they’ve been among the more successful teams in the past two decades.

Their accomplishments include a trip to the Stanley Cup Final in 2014, five trips to the Eastern Conference Final (2012-14-15, 2022 and 2024), and winning the Presidents’ Trophy in 2024.

There have been plenty of individual accomplishments as well.

Jaromir Jagr set franchise single-season records for goals (54) and points (123) in 2005-06. Artemi Panarin reached the 120-point mark in 2023-24, Adam Fox won the Norris Trophy as the League’s top defenseman in 2021 and Chris Kreider became the fourth player in team history to score 50 goals in a season when he had 52 in 2021-22. Then there’s the achievements of Lundqvist and Shesterkin, who won the Vezina Trophy as the NHL’s top goaltender 10 years apart.

They were the first team to accomplish this ignominious feat in 1992-93, and the most recent to do so this past season.

Each of those seasons went up in flames after beginning with such promise, much of it fueled by finishing with the best regular-season record in the NHL the year before. There are many similarities, including locker-room dissension, stunningly poor play on the ice and a furious fan base that often ushered their beloved Rangers off the ice at Madison Square Garden in a shower of boos.

According to Neil Smith, who was the general manager of that 1992-93 Rangers team, the biggest similarity was the inability of each coach to get his team back on track amid much dysfunction.

“The coach lost the team. That was the same for both teams,” Smith told Forever Blueshirts in a recent exclusive phone conversation.

Each of those Rangers squads was led by a veteran coach, not new to ironing out issues with his teams, but unable to do so in these instances. Roger Neilson, who ultimately coached 1,000 games for eight teams in the NHL and is 35th all-time with 460 coaching victories, was behind the Rangers bench in that fateful 1992-93 season. Peter Laviolette, who coached the Carolina Hurricanes to the Stanley Cup in 2006 and is seventh in NHL history with 846 wins, was the Rangers coach in 2024-25.

The circumstances were not exactly the same for these respected coaches. Neilson faced a player uprising led by captain Mark Messier, who believed the Rangers could not win a Stanley Cup championship with the quirky, defensive-minded coach. Laviolette was handed a mess — no pun intended — when his GM, Chris Drury, upset the players with his heavy-handed approach in handling the departures of several respected veterans, including captain Jacob Trouba.

“With our team, we had some injuries and had some problems in the locker room, and Roger wasn’t able to straighten those things out to get the team back going as it could. He wasn’t able to get ‘Mess’ and the rest of them to come to come back together as a team,” Smith explained. “So, I think that’s a similarity to Laviolette, whose team imploded and he wasn’t able to get them to come back together sufficiently to make the playoffs. That’s a similarity to our situation.”

When Smith mentions “some injuries,” he’s primarily referring to a pair of serious injuries sustained by Brian Leetch, who was coming off winning the Norris Trophy as the top NHL defenseman in 1991-92. Leetch missed significant time with a shoulder injury; and then just when it appeared he was hitting stride late in the season, he broke his ankle in an off-ice incident.

The 2024-25 Rangers didn’t have that same injury misfortune to blame their disappointing season on.

“The one thing from last year that startled me was there was so much self-inflicted wounds on that team,” Smith shared. “Right from the start of the summer with Trouba, then they expected him to come to training camp and still lead the team … [Barclay] Goodrow, they got rid of him in a way that was distasteful to the players. Whether you feel sorry for them or not, and I know they’re making all the money, the players are like ‘if they do that to him, who knows what they’ll do to me.’

“That was the worst stuff because that was all friendly fire. That put the team into a funk where during that slide (4-15-0 from mid-November through December), they were completely disillusioned. They looked like mummies out there.”

Related: NHL insider says Rangers ‘testing the market’ for K’Andre Miller in latest trade rumor

Neil Smith ‘couldn’t do nothing’ after Rangers took massive step back in 1992-93

The Rangers were 34-39 with 11 ties in the 84-game schedule in 1992-93. They finished last in the six-team Patrick Division with 79 points, 10th out of 12 teams in the Eastern Conference.

Less than a year after winning the Presidents’ Trophy, the Rangers fired Neilson during the 1992-93 campaign. Ron Smith replaced Neilson and was unable to turn things around in 44 games as coach (15-22 with seven ties).

“You couldn’t do nothing (as general manager),” Smith explained. “Mess had the locker room. And if he said ‘we’re never going to win with this guy’ then we had no chance. When I realized that — and remember this is happening to me for the first time — I had no choice but to changes coaches. I certainly wasn’t getting rid of Mess. And it was tough, I was loyal to Roger … but I believed in Mess.”

Smith admitted he was “petrified” of his losing his job and understood the Rangers had to reverse course in 1993-94 or he was in big trouble. Smith hired Mike Keenan to coach the team shortly after that disastrous season ended, added Steve Larmer early next season to a star-studded roster, and the Rangers course corrected in a major way.

They again won the Presidents’ Trophy in 1993-94, made a flurry of key trades ahead of the deadline and went on to win the Stanley Cup that spring, their first championship in 54 years.

“I knew that I couldn’t have another year like ’92-’93, there was no way I could’ve survived that, that much disappointment,” Smith said. “That’s the worst thing you can do as a manager, and that’s disappoint people. Everybody thinks you’ve got a great team and you shit the bed. Look what’s going on in Toronto right now because everybody’s expectations were so high.”

Related: Examining alternatives if Rangers don’t trade Chris Kreider this offseason

Neil Smith shares biggest difference between current Rangers and 1992-93 squad

Smith believes the biggest difference in these Rangers teams separated by three decades is the roster itself. That 1992-93 team was stocked with Stanley Cup winners and leaders like Messier, Kevin Lowe, Esa Tikkanen, and Jeff Beukeboom. Along with some great homegrown talent, that Rangers team, in Smith’s opinion, was built to bounce back in 1993-94.

“Even players like Brian Leetch. They had an edge to them,” the former GM remembered.

Not so with this current roster. The core is not made up of proven winners, and instead has a soft reputation, especially the deeper they’ve gone in prior postseason appearances. There’s not much of an “edge” with this group, one that was 39-36-7 and finished six points out of a playoff spot in the East.

That is what makes Smith skeptical about New York’s championship aspirations moving forward, even after Mike Sullivan — a two-time Stanley Cup winner — was hired as coach when Laviolette was fired.

“In some ways I really feel sorry for them because I don’t know how to dig yourself out of this,” Smith said. “I don’t know that Mike alone covers all the holes they have right now. They’re gonna have to do some work, find some guys who want to go north-south and not east-west.”

But that doesn’t mean Smith doesn’t see better days ahead for the Rangers. He just sees more limitations with this group than his team.

“I don’t think they’re going to miss the playoffs next year. I think Mike Sullivan with [Mika] Zibanejad and [Chris] Kreider and especially [Igor] Shesterkin, they’re a playoff team,” he explained. “How good can they be on top of being a playoff team? I don’t know how they go back to being a contending team with the roster the way it is. Will they make the playoffs? Yeah, I don’t know how you miss the playoffs with those players unless you have a year like this which is an aberration. But I don’t see them being a contender next year. Maybe I’m wrong. Maybe they’ll do something in the summer that will make them a contender. I don’t see it.”

Smith rode the rollercoaster that Drury now finds himself sitting in the front seat. And he has some simple advice for the current Rangers GM.

“Chris can’t have another year like this year or I’m sure his zip code will change. You’ve got to learn from things. I learned from things every year I was doing it. So, learn from things and do better the next year.”

The Rangers were officially eliminated from playoff contention with two games remaining on their schedule, when they lost 7-3 to the Carolina Hurricanes on Saturday afternoon.

That game was broadcast on ABC; and between periods, Messier discussed why the Rangers collapsed this season after winning the Presidents’ Trophy a year ago and what needs to change this offseason.

“When everyone’s talking about tearing this up here, they just did that. They’re not that far off,” Messier explained. “But they have some things to fix internally to get that spirit that was so prevalent in the team last year. The spirit was missing this year for whatever reason.”

Leah Hextall’s ice-side reporting during the game Saturday backed up Messier’s assertion about lack of spirit in the Rangers.

“It’s very quiet down here on the Rangers bench, almost church-like — Peter Laviolette, I haven’t seen him say more than, probably, two words,” she reported.

Considering their playoff hopes were hanging by the thinnest of threads, that’s disconcerting information. But not shocking. There’s been no evident joy with the Rangers most of the season. And it’s carried over into a slew of non-competitive performances and absolute no-shows, costing them valuable points in the standings.

Mark Messier on what the #NYR need to do for next year. pic.twitter.com/AlVps7F2k0

— David 🏒 (@DaveyUpper) April 12, 2025

Is that because of how general manager Chris Drury handled personnel decisions with popular teammates and respected veterans Barclay Goodrow and Jacob Trouba? Or his infamous note to the other 31 GMs in November that the Rangers were open for business, and singled out Trouba and Chris Kreider by name? Or is there something even bigger amiss in the Rangers locker room?

The legendary former Rangers captain admits he’s not 100 percent sure what the reason is for what he sees from afar because “I’m not inside the locker room.” But his take on lack of spirit is spot-on.

Messier’s co-analyst on the broadcast, former NHL defenseman PK Subban, took a deeper dive into that specific issue with the Rangers.

“On the energy, the attitude, the culture piece, that’s all got to get figured out. Some of it is on management and the organization. Some of it’s got to be on the locker room with some of the in that room, some of them have been there a long time,” Subban explained.

“Like, I’m watching this game [today], your season’s on the line. Where’s the energy? I want to see someone run somebody through the glass. It’s not about stats and numbers for me. It’s about, to a man, why are you there? What are you playing for? You’re playing for the New York Rangers, Original 6 franchise. It’s got to show in the energy. The coach and GM cannot go out there and do it for you. You’ve got to go and do it.”

Related: 3 Rangers takeaways after playoff hopes finally buried under avalanche of mistakes in 7-3 loss

Mark Messier’s No. 1 question for Rangers: ‘Who’s your leader?‘

Perhaps this shouldn’t be a big surprise, but Messier believes the No. 1 fix for the Rangers this offseason is to identify their next captain and leader of the team. Messier is renowned for being among the greatest leaders in professional sports history, often referred to simply as “The Captain.”

In fact, so revered as captain was Messier during his playing days that the NHL created the Mark Messier Leadership Award which is presented annually “to the player who exemplifies great leadership qualities to his team, on and off the ice, during the regular season and who plays a leading role in his community growing the game of hockey.”

Last year’s winner of the award? Trouba. He’s yet to be replaced as Rangers captain since being traded to the Anaheim Ducks in December. More importantly, there’s been a leadership void on the team all season, and no one has stepped in to adequately fill it.

“The No. 1 thing they need to think about is identifying a captain and a leader,” Messier stated. “It’s been 1971 since Johnny Bucyk raised the Stanley Cup for the Boston Bruins, and that’s the last time a team won the Stanley Cup without a captain.

“So, identifying a captain and a leader is a must.”

Even before personnel changes, and/or replacing coach Peter Laviolette or general manager Chris Drury?

“I don’t care about the personnel right now, I don’t want to talk about the personnel because until [the leader] is in place, no matter who’s in the lineup, that’s got to be fixed first. … Get this first and then all of the other stuff will fall into place.

“Who’s your leader? That’s all we’ve got to think about.”

Former Rangers captain Dave Maloney, the team’s longtime radio color commentator, was first to tee off. At the close of the second period, he cut off play-by-play man Don LaGreca to spit out that the Rangers were done in by a “brain-dead two minutes” in that period.

Maloney referred to brutal play by the Rangers’ special teams, which allowed the first two goals of the game just 1:27 apart. First, it was Timo Meier somehow scoring only four seconds into the Devils’ first power play at 10:56, following a clean face-off win by Nico Hischier in the Rangers end. Then with a chance to tie the game on their own power play, Chris Kreider turned the puck over and the Rangers surrendered a Jesper Bratt short-handed goal off a 2-on-1 rush with Hischier at 12:23.

Other than that, how’d you like the play Mrs. Lincoln?

Jesper Bratt’s shorty puts the Devils up by two 😈 pic.twitter.com/BHnhWtc0j1

— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) April 5, 2025

In an eye-blink, the Rangers went from a scoreless game to being in a two-goal hole. Lest we forget, the Rangers are the only NHL team not to come back and win at least once this season when trailing by multiple goals.

Here’s another fun fact. Since March 3, the Rangers are 2-for-43 on the power play — and have allowed three short-handed goals in their past four games. So, over a month of hockey, the Rangers have been outscored 3-2 while holding the man advantage.

That set up this tirade from ABC studio analyst, former NHL defenseman PK Subban.

“Their power play is abysmal and everybody’s got to take responsibility for that, not just the players, it’s coaching as well,” Subban stated. “You’ve got to put those guys in position to get better. … You’ve got to be disciplined with your structure. … You’ve got to outwork the penalty kill. They’re not doing those things. So, those are simple intangibles. No matter what skill you have on your power play, it ain’t going to work unless you outwork the other side.”

The Rangers look ready for golf👀#nhl #hockey #nyr #rangers #devils #reaction pic.twitter.com/PPKNACmIJ1

— P.K. Subban (@PKSubban1) April 5, 2025

Related: Rangers Daily — Alex Ovechkin appreciation; Islanders, Red Wings remain alive

Rangers great Mark Messier says ‘light’s not on’ for his former team

The Rangers (36-33-7) dropped four points behind the Montreal Canadiens for the second wild card in the Eastern Conference — the Canadiens rallied in the third period Saturday night to edge the Philadelphia Flyers 3-2 at Bell Centre. Each team has six games remaining in the regular season — but Montreal’s next game is Sunday on the road against the Nashville Predators, who are third from the bottom in the NHL standings. The Rangers are off until Monday, when the powerful Tampa Bay Lightning come to Madison Square Garden.

New York started flat again Saturday, and showed no momentum carryover from their spirited 5-4 overtime win against the Minnesota Wild on Wednesday at the Garden and a 6-1 shellacking of the San Jose Sharks on the road last Saturday. Instead, the Rangers face-planted, failing to win a third straight game for the eighth time (0-4-4) since their last three-game winning streak Nov. 14-19.

That stood out to Subban’s studio partner and legendary Rangers captain Mark Messier.

“I watched the Montreal Canadiens win in overtime the other day, and the celebration, they were so excited,” Messier shared. “I watched the Rangers win in overtime and I didn’t see the same amount of excitement and passion for the win. The light’s not on — and I don’t know why.”

That theme was picked up by sideline reporter Ray Ferraro, an 18-year NHL veteran who played part of the 1995-96 season with the Rangers.

“There just doesn’t seem to be that internal drive or fight right now from the Rangers,” Ferraro concluded.

“They seemed resigned (to missing the playoffs), but they’re still in it.”

Going from facing the top team in the Eastern Conference to the last-place team in the entire NHL seems like a soft landing spot for the reeling Rangers, who’ve lost 16 of their past 21 games (5-16-0). But remember, it was just last month that these very same Blackhawks handed the Rangers a 2-1 loss at Madison Square Garden.

Playing on consecutive days will lead to some lineup changes for the Rangers. Louis Domingue is expected to make his season debut for the Blueshirts in goal after Jonathan Quick surrendered six goals Saturday (the seventh landed into an empty net) and failed in his bid to earn his 400th NHL victory in place of the injured Igor Shesterkin.

Domingue is off to a rocky start with Hartford of the American Hockey League this season. The 32-year-old is 4-9-2 with a 3.64 goals-against average and .888 save percentage. In his one appearance with the Rangers last season, Domingue excelled with 26 saves in a 4-1 win against the Minnesota Wild on Nov. 9, 2023.

And, hey, the Rangers are playing the Blackhawks, who just lost five in a row before a 4-2 win against the Montreal Canadiens on Friday.

Also, there’s the chance that defenseman Zac Jones and/or forward Jonny Brodzinski will draw into the lineup Sunday.

With the Dallas Stars next ahead on the schedule, Tuesday at MSG, the Rangers need these two points against the Blackhawks in a major way.

New York Rangers news

Let’s start with three things to watch for when the Rangers play the Blackhawks, focusing on trying to sustain positive momentum within the game, something they failed to do against the Capitals.

Looking back, here are our three takeaways from the Rangers’ latest loss against the Capitals, including another special teams meltdown.

And how about Mark Messier blowing up the whole Rangers operation, speaking in between periods on ABC on Saturday?

Top Rangers prospect Gabe Perreault had a goal and assist to help the United States reach the Gold Medal game Sunday at the 2025 World Junior Championship with a 4-1 semifinals win against Czechia. The Americans play Finland, which defeated Sweden in overtime in the other semifinal.

NHL news

Elliotte Friedman went on Hockey Night in Canada and stated that trade talk is heating up with the listing Vancouver Canucks. Friedman believes either J.T. Miller or Elias Pettersson will be traded, though he dismissed talk of Miller being dealt to the Rangers.

Sounds like Buffalo Sabres captain Rasmus Dahlin is sick and tired of his team’s shoddy play. The Sabres are 3-12-4 in their past 19 games, last in the Eastern Conference with 33 points (two points behind the Rangers) and Dahlin ripped into their performance following a 3-1 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights on Saturday.

Seattle Kraken defenseman Adam Larsson exited their 4-2 loss to the Edmonton Oilers after the second period with an undisclosed injury and didn’t return.

The New Jersey Devils are “frustrated, pissed off” after their losing streak extended to four games and they were swept on a three-game California trip. They lost 3-2 to the San Jose Sharks on Saturday.

Don’t look now but the Detroit Red Wings are rolling. They won their fourth game in a row, doubling up the Winnipeg Jets 4-2.

Ryan O’Reilly had a hat trick to lead the Nashville Predators to a 4-1 win against the Calgary Flames.

Watch Matthew Knies record his first NHL hat trick in the Toronto Maple Leafs’ 6-4 win against the Boston Bruins.

So, when The Captain’s got a hot take on the Rangers, it’s worth taking a listen.

Also Read: DirecTV Stream Review: Is Worth It for NY Rangers Fans?

Messier isn’t around Madison Square Garden a whole lot these days. But much of his hockey-related time is spent as an in-studio analyst for ESPN and ABC’s NHL coverage, so he still has a pretty good idea of what’s going on with his old team. And he was very clear with his assessment of the Rangers (17-20-1) during ABC’s telecast of New York’s 7-4 loss to the Washington Capitals on Saturday afternoon.

“I think the core of the Rangers is fractured right now,” he said. “And I don’t think they’re fractured internally. I think there’s a disconnect between management and the coaching staff, there’s a lack of trust and loyalty now — and in order to get over that, it’s going to take a lot of work. They don’t look like a championship team right now.”

Mark Messier on #NYR: “Right now the core is fractured. There’s a disconnect between management and the coaching staff. There’s a lack of trust and loyalty now.” pic.twitter.com/Q0OHABoHpt

— NHL News (@PuckReportNHL) January 4, 2025

The Rangers won the Presidents’ Trophy last season, got within two wins of the Stanley Cup Final and began this season with a 5-0-1 run. They had a 12-4-1 record after a 4-3 road win against the Vancouver Canucks on Nov. 19. But beginning with a 3-2 loss to the Calgary Flames two nights later, the Rangers are 5-16-0 with a .238 points percentage that’s last in the NHL during that stretch.

During the summer, the Rangers placed veteran center Barclay Goodrow on waivers to get around his no-trade clause; he was snapped up by the San Jose Sharks. On Dec. 6, they traded captain Jacob Trouba to the Anaheim Ducks, a move that frustrated many of the players. Forward Kaapo Kakko, the No. 2 pick in the 2019 NHL Draft, was traded to the Seattle Kraken less than two weeks later.

Related: 3 Rangers takeaways from sloppy 7-4 loss to Capitals

Mark Messier feels ‘cascade effect’ is part of Rangers downward spiral

Messier said players must realize that trades are part of life in the NHL, and that they must put their feelings aside and play.

“As players, we have to be big enough, strong enough, man enough and man up to get over that,” he said. “We are not in control of some things that happen as players. Management can do whatever they want, and we have a responsibility to each other as players. They’ve got to get over that. We haven’t seen a lot of emotion from the Rangers over the last month.”

Messier compared the Rangers’ current situation, especially the trade of Trouba in order to open salary cap space, to the emotions he and his Oilers teammates felt when Gretzky was traded to the Los Angeles Kings in August 1988 – a deal that was also about money, albeit not in a salary-cap era. He said he and his teammates were mad at management for the trade but were able to channel that emotion into another championship in 1990.

“I remember when Edmonton traded Wayne Gretzky. We were mad at management at trading away a brother,” he said. “We were able to overcome it in Edmonton, as mad as we were at ownership and at management and everything else at trading away one of our brothers. It takes a lot of work, a lot of trust and I think the Rangers can (overcome it), but it’s not going to be easy.”

Messier, acquired by the Rangers in October 1991, also talked about his own departure from the Rangers three years after June 14, 1994, when the Cup returned to New York. He became a free agent in the summer of 1997 and signed with the Vancouver Canucks. After a management change in New York – Glen Sather, his old general manager in Edmonton, succeeded Neil Smith, who built the 1994 championship team, in the summer of 2000 – Messier returned to the Rangers shortly afterward and played with them until he retired in 2004.

“I left New York because the team didn’t want me,” he said. “I could not play under the circumstances where I did not feel the loyalty.”

Messier added some thoughts during the first intermission after an interview with forward Chris Kreider, the longest-tenured current Rangers player. Kreider and Trouba were mentioned by Rangers GM Chris Drury in a letter to the 31 other NHL general managers several weeks ago as players who could be available in trade, and Messier feels that’s had a negative impact on the team.

“You can tell with Kreider, one of the longest-standing Rangers of all time, he’s clearly been hurt by being put on the trade block, for whatever reason,” Messier said. “That has had a profound effect on the core of the team. When you put Chris Kreider on the trade block, that affects his best friend, (Mika) Zibanejad. The cascade effect of that has clearly been evident over the last month.”

The cascade effect, as Messier called it, has resulted in the Rangers sharing the basement in the Metropolitan Division and 14th place in the 16-team Eastern Conference with the Islanders. There’s been no bigger disappointment in the NHL this season than the Rangers, though the Nashville Predators are right there with them.

Yet again, the Rangers will try and get back on track, when they visit the last-overall Chicago Blackhawks on Sunday.

Olczyk and Hall of Famer Jarome Iginla are replacing Mike Gartner and David Branch. Gartner, a teammate of Olczyk’s with the Rangers in the early 1990s, will transition to Chair of the Board in June 2025. 

The Rangers acquired Olczyk from the Winnipeg Jets on Dec. 28, 1992, in return for forwards Tie Domi and Kris King. He had 40 points (18 goals, 22 assists) in 103 games for New York before being traded back to the Jets on April 7, 1995, for a fifth-round pick in the 1995 NHL Draft. The Chicago native played 1,031 NHL games for six teams, finishing his career with 794 points (342 goals, 452 assists) – and one Stanley Cup ring.

Olczyk had the fourth of his six NHL hat tricks with the Rangers, scoring three goals in a 5-4 loss to the Philadelphia Flyers on March 24, 1993. But coach Mike Keenan didn’t like him, and Olczyk spent much of the 1993-94 regular season watching from the press box. The same was true during the run to the Cup; he dressed only once — in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Final against the New Jersey Devils, a night better known for Mark Messier’s victory guarantee and third-period hat trick in a 4-2 victory at the Meadowlands.

In “The Wait Is Over,” published in 2014, Olczyk remembered his one playoff appearance in the Cup year.

“That day was pretty surreal,” he said. “I hadn’t played since the trade deadline in March; it had been 2 1/2 months or so. In typical Keenan fashion — we’d had some injuries, guys had been taped up for a period of time in the playoffs. I was standing by the stick rack at the old Brendan Byrne Arena in the Meadowlands and Keenan comes up to me and kind of looks at me and says, ‘What was your best year in the NHL scoring goals?’

“I looked at him and I was thinking, ‘Really? You’re asking me that question, like you don’t know that or you don’t have access to a media guide?’ I told him I had scored 42 goals one year in Toronto (in 1987-88) and had five straight 30-goal seasons. I pretty much thought it was an interview or an audition, like I was going in for a job interview.

“He said, ‘You scored 42 goals one year?’ I said, ‘Yeah, I scored 42 goals with Toronto.’ He looks at me, he looks at my sticks, and says, ‘You’re playing tonight. You’re going to play. We need you. The guys trust you, the guys love you. I trust you.’ — he wouldn’t say he loved me, but that was OK. He said, ‘You’re playing tonight.’”

Related: John Vanbiesbrouck believes he could’ve led Rangers to Stanley Cup like Mike Richter

Ed Olczyk recalls his one appearance in 1994 Rangers’ run to Stanley Cup championship

The Rangers entered the night trailing 3-2 in the series, and Olczyk said the pregame atmosphere in the locker room before the game was “pretty tight and tense.”

“That’s the one thing I remember — it was very quiet. We had our guys who would talk — me and ‘Heals’ (goalie Glenn Healy). We had the yappers, the guys who would keep everybody loose, and then Esa Tikkanen would say a few things but no one could understand him because he was speaking seven languages—you really couldn’t understand him. I don’t want to say ‘tight,’ but we were tense. We really were.

“I just remember it was really quiet, no one had said anything for a period of time — I don’t know if it was three minutes or five minutes—and Kevin Lowe just saying, ‘Well Mess, I guess we’ve got to win this one.’ Everybody just kind of broke up into a giggle and ‘Mess’ had that smirk on his face that he likes to have every once in a while. It was one of those situations where this is it, Mess said what he said. We had plenty of confidence.”

Messier backed up his victory guarantee, but the unsung hero that night, according to Olczyk, was goaltender Mike Richter, who kept the Rangers within two goals before the offense woke up late in the second period

“Probably the greatest goaltending performance I’ve ever seen in a playoff game ever was Mike Richter in that game,” Olczyk says. “Mike Richter was incredible in that game. If not for ‘Ricky,’ we don’t win at all. He was absolutely incredible. He gave us a chance to win.

“He made a couple of big saves when it was 2–0. [Alexei] Kovalev scored late in the second to make it 2–1, and then the rest is history.”

Even though he didn’t play much of a role in winning the Cup, the member of the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame Class of 2012 remembered 20 years later that Rangers fans hadn’t forgotten him and some of the other lesser lights on the team.

“People appreciated the skill and the way that we played,” he said. “We also could play that hard-nosed [style] where the role play­ers were important; guys like Greg Gilbert, Mike Hudson, Joey Kocur, Brian Noonan, Stephane Matteau, all those guys. People appreciated it, and we could play pretty much any way that you wanted. “I think people were proud of the way we han­dled ourselves both on and off the ice. We had a lot of fun. People knew the pressure we were under, and it still is much appreciated, as it has been over the years.

“It’s really amazing—I’m honored and humbled. There are so many people, all walks of Rangers fans, from the Blueshirts to police officers to firemen to people that work in the Garden. It makes you feel really good. They’ll tell you stories line, ‘My dad never thought he’d see a Cup and he saw it in ’94. I’m glad he was able to be on this earth and have seen a Stanley Cup.’ It just makes you feel really good.”

The five episodes of “Game 7” available to Amazon Prime subscribers include: 2003 ALCS – New York Yankees vs. Boston Red Sox, 1987 Stanley Cup Final – Edmonton Oilers vs. Philadelphia Flyers, 2006 WCSF – Dallas Mavericks vs. San Antonio Spurs,  2016 World Series – Chicago Cubs vs. Cleveland Indians, 1994 Stanley Cup Final – New York Rangers vs. Vancouver Canucks.

There’s your Rangers connection.

As described by the press release- “GAME 7 brings the two greatest words in sports to life in a new five-part anthology series. With first-hand accounts from both the winning and losing athletes who participated in these high-stakes showdowns, each episode goes behind the scenes to revisit the most iconic moments of the most memorable games in history. From the Chicago Cubs’ drought-shattering 2016 World Series victory to the New York Ranger’s win in the 1994 Stanley Cup Finals, the series will explore how this quintessential test of maximum pressure and extreme intensity weighs on the hearts and minds of the legendary stars at the center of them.”

Although Rangers fans have enjoyed “No Easy Victories” on E60, “Road To Victory” by MSG Network, and “June 17th, 1994” by ESPN 30 For 30, this piece brings new perspectives and a different narrative arch about the historical subject matter of that incredible 1994 postseason.

Related: Former Rangers goalie believes he could’ve led them to Stanley Cup in 1994 like Mike Richter

Breaking down New York Rangers episode in new Amazon Prime series

The structure

The Rangers episode is nonlinear. Mark Messier’s life is briefly overviewed from his childhood onward with ample photos and videos to supplement the years before he became a hockey icon. It also touches upon the lead-up from the 1991-92 season.

But the heart of the documentary begins five hours before the puck drop in Game 7, highlighting Rangers fans with newsreels, TV shows, and radio clips talking about the Stanley Cup.

This episode summarizes the 1993-94 New York Rangers regular season and playoffs in quick fashion. The 53-minute program focuses mainly on Game 7 of the 1994 Stanley Cup Final as its centerpiece.

New, clean footage

A score of never-before-seen footage will entertain die-hards and new fans alike. The film has really clear images and videos of on-ice action, not just broadcast video, including practice footage of the Canucks and Rangers before Game 7.

Audio, visual, and narration cuts are dramatic. Each word has a coordinated visual to pack the punch. There are also brief mic ’d-up shots from the game of Ranger players and coach Mike Keenan.

Both Gary Thorne and Sam Rosen broadcast audio is used to provide lyrics to the piece. A rotating sky cam, on-ice cameras, and sharp shots of cameras trained on specific players complement the broadcast footage.

Brief but sharp footage of the 1940 championship win is a nice addition. The 1994 game-play visuals are smooth, and very clean without blur or pixelation. It’s an impressive display of tape captured from 31 years ago.

Messier is an executive producer of this docuseries, along with well-known actor Danny Devito.

Candid bond between Mark Messier and Brian Leetch on display

Keenan, Rosen, John McEnroe, Trevor Linden and Adam Graves add their perspectives. Keenan is subdued and gives a lot of credit to Messier.

Brian Leetch is also an interview subject, featured with Messier walking through Madison Square Garden recently They speak with one another rather than the director Daniel Amigan, reminiscing and shedding light on their relationship, the team, and bits of fun facts not discussed previously.

This is a highlight for any Rangers fan, being brought inside that 1994 championship by Messier and Leetch.

If you think you’ve seen or heard it all when it some to the 1994 New York Rangers, this documentary proves otherwise. And who can resist another peek back to 1994, the only Stanley Cup championship in 84 years for the Rangers?

GAME 7 is produced by Words + Pictures and directed by Daniel Amigone. GAME 7 is executive produced by Connor Schell (co-creator of 30 for 30, executive producer of Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story and The Last Dance), Aaron Cohen, and Anneka Jones of Words + Pictures; six-time Stanley Cup winner Mark Messier, Mat Vlasic, and Isaac Chera of GAME 7; and Danny DeVito, Jake DeVito, and Lucy DeVito of Jersey Films 2^nd Avenue.

Lines have been named for such things as the subways that run under Madison Square Garden, nationalities, food, animals and movies. They’ve included Hockey Hall of Famers and trios that played together for several seasons, as well as players who spent just a year or two with the Rangers. Some have keyed Stanley Cup runs, others came up short and still others barely made the playoffs.

Regardless, all of them bring warm memories to New York hockey fans.

Related: How Igor Shesterkin could pass Henrik Lundqvist as greatest Rangers goalie

Remembering greatest forward lines in Rangers history

Here’s a look at some of the most memorable lines in Rangers history.

GAG Line (Vic Hadfield, Jean Ratelle, Rod Gilbert)

It’s not unusual for a team to put some muscle on a forward line to protect two players who are focused on offense. Such is the tale of arguably the best post-World War II line in Rangers history.

Gilbert and Ratelle grew up in the Montreal suburbs. The Rangers signed Gilbert at age 14, then inked Ratelle, whose school was next to Gilbert’s home, soon after at his friend’s behest. They played together in junior hockey for Guelph, making life miserable for goalies. Hadfield was claimed by the Rangers from the Chicago Black Hawks in the June 1961 Inter-League draft. He didn’t have the same skill level as Gilbert and Ratelle but brought muscle to an undersized team and actually led the NHL in penalty minutes with 151 in 1963-64.

Hadfield eventually improved his game to the point that he could contribute offensively, and GM-coach Emile Francis put him on the left side of a line with Ratelle in the middle and Gilbert on the right in 1965-66. Back problems hampered each over the next two seasons, but the threesome began clicking in 1967-68, with Hadfield reaching the 20-goal mark for the first time, while Ratelle (78 points) and Gilbert (77) finished fourth and fifth in NHL scoring.

The still-unnamed unit remained very productive during the next three seasons before having a season that might have ended with the Rangers’ first championship since 1940 were it not for an unfortunate injury. After a sizzling start, they were tagged “The GAG (Goal A Game) Line,” though their pace of production soon led to a revised tag of “The TAG (Two A Game) Line.” All three players broke the 40-goal mark, an NHL first, and they wound up with a combined total of 312 points, including the first 50-goal season in Rangers history by Hadfield, who had never scored more than 26 (he scored Nos. 49 and 50 on the final day of the season despite playing with a broken thumb).

Ratelle had 46 goals and 109 points in 63 games, and battled Phil Esposito of the Boston Bruins for first in the scoring race when his regular season ended on March 1, 1972, after a slap shot by teammate Dale Rolfe broke his ankle. After the Rangers eliminated the Montreal Canadiens and the Black Hawks to make the Stanley Cup Final for the first time since 1950, The Rangers lost in six games to the Bruins, with Ratelle basically still playing on one leg.

The “GAG Line” lived up to its name in each of the next two seasons before a trade sent Hadfield to the Pittsburgh Penguins in the summer of 1974. Ratelle and Esposito switched teams in November 1975 when they were involved in one of the biggest deals in NHL history. Gilbert was the only one to retire with the Rangers, hanging up his skates in November 1977. Each had their number retired by the Rangers, and Gilbert remains the franchise’s all-time scorer leader (406 goals, 1,021 points).

The A Line (Bun Cook, Frank Boucher, Bill Cook)

No line in Rangers history stayed together for as long as their first great trio, each of whom is enshrined in the Hockey Hall of Fame.

The Cook brothers and Boucher each played in the Western Hockey League until the WHL folded after the 1925-26 season. The Rangers bought the contracts of the Cook brothers, then acquired Boucher from Boston after the Bruins had purchased his contract from Vancouver.

The threesome, which was named for the subway line that ran under the old Madison Square Garden, was an immediate hit. Bill Cook scored the first goal in franchise history, giving the Rangers a 1-0 victory over the defending Stanley Cup champion Montreal Maroons in their NHL debut on Nov. 16, 1926. He led the NHL with 33 goals and 37 points in 44 games, and the line helped the Rangers to first place in the American Division in 1926-27. One year later, they were key to the Rangers’ first championship run, with the line scoring every goal (five by Boucher) in a 3-2 series win over the Maroons in the best-of-5 Stanley Cup Final.

The line was a perfect blend of scoring, playmaking and skill. Cook led the NHL in goals (28) and points (50) again in 1932-33, then scored the Cup-winning goal in overtime against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Boucher led the League in assists three times and topped all playoff scorers twice. He also won the Lady Byng Trophy seven times in a span of eight seasons; the NHL finally gave him the trophy in 1935 and commissioned another one. Bun Cook was an excellent passer in his own right (he came up with the idea of the drop pass) and scored at least 13 goals in each of his first nine seasons, none of which was longer than 48 games.

The “A Line” rolled along for New York’s first 11 seasons, longer than any other trio in team history. They received one last honor on Feb. 11, 1968, when they were among the 62 players invited to the final game at the “old Garden” and made one final rush that ended with Bill Cook putting the puck in the net.

The Messier Line (Adam Graves, Mark Messier, Tony Amonte/Alexei Kovalev/Pat Verbeek)

Messier and Graves won the Stanley Cup as teammates, but not linemates, with the Edmonton Oilers in 1990 and arrived in New York a few weeks apart in the fall of 1991; Graves as a free agent in September and Messier in a blockbuster trade a few weeks later. Coach Roger Nielson put them together, and they meshed perfectly: Graves, who had never reached double figures in goals in Edmonton, scored 26 playing on Messier’s left side that first season. Messier won the Hart Trophy as MVP with a 107-point season, and Amonte, a rookie, spent much of the season on their right wing and was a Calder Trophy finalst after scoring 35 goals. The Rangers won the Presidents’ Trophy as the regular-season champion.

Graves and Messier stayed together until 1996-97, but the third member of the line wasn’t always the same. Amonte was sent to Chicago at the 1994 NHL Trade Deadline, opening up a spot for Kovalev. Graves broke the Rangers record with 52 goals and Messier topped the forwards with 84 points that magical season. Kovalev made his biggest mark in the playoffs, finishing with nine goals and 21 points to help the Rangers end their 54-year championship drought.

The right side changed again late in the 1994-95 season when the Rangers landed Verbeek from the Hartford Whalers. The “Little Ball of Hate” had 10 goals in 19 games after coming to New York, then scored 41 goals and finished with 82 points in 69 games during his one full season with the Rangers before leaving as a free agent.

Messier did the same a year later, signing with the Vancouver Canucks before returning three years later. He and Graves were reunited for the 2000-01 season before Graves ended his career by playing two seasons with the San Jose Sharks.

Bulldog Line (Dave Balon/Steve Vickers, Walt Tkachuk, Bill Fairbairn)

Few teams have two nicknamed lines, but the Rangers of the early 1970s did. While the soon-to-be-named “GAG Line” piled up goals and points, the “Bulldog Line” that Francis put together in 1969-70 became known for its work ethic, tenacity and two-way play.

Francis put Tkaczuk, a 22-year-old center, together with veteran left wing Balon and rookie right wing Fairbairn on a line that was an instant hit. Balon led the team with 33 goals, Tkaczuk was tops with 70 points and Fairbairn was second in Calder Trophy balloting after a 23-goal, 56-point season. The Bulldogs actually outscored their more heralded linemates with 203 points.

Tkaczuk and Fairbairn also became one of the League’s top penalty-killing duos.

Balon had his biggest goal-scoring season in 1970-71 with 36, and Tkachuk led the Rangers in scoring with 75 points — although Fairbairn, hampered by injuries, managed just 30 points in 56 games. Balon was traded early in 1971-72 after his play showed signs of decline (he was later diagnosed with multiple sclerosis), but Tkaczuk and Fairbairn thrived despite a rotating set of left wings, combining for 46 goals, 125 points and a plus-68 rating to help the Rangers reach the Final for the first time since 1950.

Francis put Vickers on the left wing of a revised “Bulldog Line” in 1972-73, and Vickers rewarded him by scoring 30 goals, including three hat tricks, and winning the Calder Trophy as NHL rookie of the year. Fairbairn also had an NHL career-best 30 goals, and the trio combined for 17 game-winners. They stayed together for one more season before Vickers moved to the top line after Hadfield was traded in the summer of 1974. Fairbairn and Tkaczuk stayed together until early in the 1976-77 season, when Fairbairn was traded to the Minnesota North Stars.

Related: Marc Staal’s career with Rangers is one that deserves to be appreciated

The Bread Line (Alex Shibicky, Neil Colville, Mac Colville)

As the “A Line” was coasting to its final stop, the Rangers’ next great line was just leaving the station.

The Colville brothers and Shibicky played together coming up through the Rangers system, so it was no surprise that when they reached the NHL, they were put together on the same line (and lived in the same apartment). They soon became known as the Rangers’ “bread and butter,” hence their nickname. The threesome hit their stride in 1936-37 and remained together through 1941-42.

Shibicky was the most prolific scorer among the three, twice breaking the 20-goal mark in an era where the regular-season lasted just 48 games. One reason for his success was his pioneering use of the slap shot, which he described as being “just like a bullet.” Neil Coville was the most honored; he was a Second-Team All-Star in 1938-39 and again in 1939-40, when they helped the Rangers win their third Stanley Cup championship since entering the NHL in 1926. Mac Coville brought a solid two-way game that balanced the line.

All three enlisted in the Canadian Army in 1942 and returned to the Rangers after World War II, but the magic was gone. The only one of the three to have any post-war success was Neil Coville, who became a defenseman and played four seasons, earning a third Second-Team All-Star selection in 1947-48 that made him one of the few players in NHL history to be named an all-star as a forward and a defenseman.

No Name, Just Points (Dean Prentice, Larry Popein, Andy Bathgate)

No, that’s not their real name. Actually, the Rangers’ top line of the late 1950s and early 1960s never had a nickname. But Prentice and Bathgate, junior teammates at Guelph in the Ontario Hockey Association, were wings on a line with “The Pope” that put up a lot of offense and helped the Rangers to three straight playoff berths in the late 1950s.

Bathgate was the star of the trio and the only one in the Hockey Hall of Fame. He surpassed Frank Boucher’s single-season record of 62 points in 1955-56 and had at least 74 points in each of the next seven seasons — including an NHL career-high of 88 in 1958-59, when he won the Hart Trophy. His slap shot was one of the most feared in the NHL, and it was his backhander to Jacques Plante’s face in a Nov. 1, 1959, game against the Montreal Canadiens that began the era of the goalie mask. Bathgate was traded to Toronto in February 1964 after scoring 272 goals with the Rangers, a team record that lasted until Gilbert came along. The Rangers retired his No. 9 in 2009.

But Bathgate’s linemates were solid players in their own right. Prentice, one of the most underrated players in NHL history, had four 20-goal seasons and broke the 60-point mark twice. He played more than a decade after being traded to Boston early in the 1962-63 season and was a 26-goal scorer for the North Stars at age 40.

Popein was a solid two-way center during his six full seasons with the Rangers, averaging 12 goals and 33 points before he was sent back to Vancouver of the Western Hockey League in 1960. He coached the Rangers briefly in 1973-74.

Two Czechs and a Swede (Martin Straka, Michael Nylander, Jaromir Jagr)

For the two seasons they were together, the “Two Czechs and a Swede” combination of three over-30 forwards was as good a line as there was in the NHL.

Jagr, a five-time NHL scoring champion, arrived first, coming in a trade with the Washington Capitals midway through the 2003-04 season. Nylander played with six teams before he signed with the Rangers as a free agent in August 2004, though the lockout two months later kept him from playing his first game until 2005-06. Straka, a longtime teammate of Jagr with the Pittsburgh Penguins, signed as a free agent in August 2005.

The Rangers missed the playoffs for seven straight seasons, and little was expected from them coming out of the lockout. But new coach Tom Renney put Nylander between the two former Penguins, and they clicked right away. Jagr set Rangers records that still stand with 54 goals and 123 points, finishing second in the scoring race. Nylander had NHL career highs in points (79) and plus-minus (plus-31), and Straka had his best season in five years, finishing with 22 goals and 76 points. With their No. 1 line firing on all cylinders (99 goals, 278 points), the Rangers returned to the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

The Jagr-Nylander-Straka unit led the Rangers to the postseason again in 2006-07 and helped them win a series for the first time since 1997. But Nylander was a 35-year-old free agent that summer and returned to the Capitals — and his old linemates weren’t the same without him. After a 71-point season in 2007-08, Jagr became a free agent and headed for the KHL; Straka retired after dropping from 70 points to 41.

The Powerhouse Line (Lynn Patrick, Phil Watson, Bryan Hextall)

This threesome came in the late 1930s and thrived from 1939, when Boucher replaced Lester Patrick as coach, until World War II decimated the Rangers.

They were an interesting mix. Lynn Patrick was Lester’s older son (Muzz, a defenseman, was also part of the team). Watson was a volatile playmaker from Montreal who later went on to coach the Rangers, and Hextall was a dynamic scorer who led the NHL in goals twice, in points once and scored the overtime goal in Game 6 of the 1940 Stanley Cup Final against the Maple Leafs in Toronto to give the Rangers their third championship.

But their best season actually came in 1941-42, when Patrick led the league in goals, Hextall was tops in points and the threesome finished 1-2-4 in the scoring race. Patrick and Hextall were First-Team All-Stars, and Watson was voted to the Second Team. They helped power the Rangers to a first-place finish, but the Maple Leafs upset them in the Semifinals.

All three had excellent seasons in 1942-43, but most of the rest of the team that had finished first the previous season had left for the war. Patrick departed in 1943, Watson played for the Canadiens in 1943-44 due to wartime travel restrictions and helped them win the Cup, and Hextall played one more season before being denied a permit to cross into the United States for the rest of the war. The trio never reunited after the fighting ended.

Related: How Artemi Panarin stacks up with Jaromir Jagr in Rangers history

The Mafia Line/ The Godfather Line (Don Murdoch, Phil Esposito, Don Maloney)

A “Godfather” and two “Dons” helped carry the Rangers to the 1979 Stanley Cup Final.

Esposito, the “Godfather” had never been the offensive force with the Rangers that he’d been with the Bruins before arriving in a November 1975 trade. But the return of Murdoch from a suspension midway through the 1978-79 season and the arrival of Maloney a few weeks later gave him the best-matched set of linemates he had during his time with the Rangers.

The trio meshed quickly. Maloney, the younger brother of defenseman Dave Maloney, provided some oomph with 26 points in 28 games from the left side, and Murdoch contributed 14 goals and 37 points in 40 games. Esposito, seemingly reinvigorated by his youthful linemates, scored 42 goals (including a four-goal night at Boston Garden) and tied for the team lead with 78 points. It was his only 40-goal season with the Rangers.

Together. they were the driving offensive force for a team that finished third in the Patrick Division, won a playoff series for the first time in five years and upset the regular-season champion New York Islanders before losing to the Canadiens in the Stanley Cup Final.

Esposito and Maloney were 1-2 in scoring for the Rangers in 1979-80, and Murdoch scored 23 goals in 56 games before he was traded. Esposito retired midway through 1980-81, but Maloney went on to play 11 productive seasons in New York, though he never had the same offensive numbers he did while playing with Espo.

The Still Need a Nickname Line (Artemi Panarin, Vincent Trocheck, Alexis Lafreniere)

This nameless group deserves its own moniker after powering the Rangers to the Presidents’ Trophy last season and helping them get within two victories of the Stanley Cup Final.

Panarin has been one of the most productive players in Rangers history since signing as a free agent in July 2019. He broke the 60-assist and 90-point marks three times in his first four seasons with the Rangers (and had 58 points in 42 games during the COVID-shortened 56-game 2020-21 season), was a First-Team All-Star in 2019-20 and a Second-Team All-Star in 2022-23.

The ’22-23 season was his first playing with Trocheck, a center who signed as a free agent in the summer of 2022 and had his best season since 2017-18 playing with Panarin. They were joined in 2023-24 by Lafreniere, the first player taken in the 2020 NHL Draft who had yet to find the right spot in the lineup.

New coach Peter Laviolette found it when he put Lafreniere with Panarin and Trocheck and saw each have a career season. Panarin’s 120 points are second in Rangers history, and his 49 goals are tied for fifth. Trocheck surpassed his career best with 77 points, and Lafreniere had a breakout season with 28 goals (26 at even strength) and 57 points (only six on the power play). The threesome also combined for 21 goals and 49 points in the playoffs, finishing 1-2-4 in team scoring.

Barring injuries, it’s hard to see Laviolette breaking up this trio any time soon. They still have plenty of room for growth — especially by Lafreniere, who turns 23 three days into the season.