2026-27 Rangers and NHL Preview

It's that time again. Opening night in the NHL. The New York Rangers open the 2026-27 season against the Boston Bruins at TD Garden. After missing the playoffs two years in a row, Chris Drury made some roster changes over the summer to make sure the third time would be the charm.

Gone are Artemi Panarin, Vincent Trocheck, Adam Edstrom, Will Borgen, Taylor Raddysh and Jonathan Quick.

In are Pavel Dorofeyev, Marcus Pettersson, Sean Durzi, Oliver Bjorkstrand, Joonas Korpisalo, Joe Veleno, Eeli Tolvanen and Alberts Smits. 

Dorofeyev, though not the playmaker Panarin was, is a better scorer. Pettersson, Durzi and Smits stabilize a defense corp that was one of the worst in the league last season; Korpisalo replaces Quick as Igor Shesterkin's backup; and Bjorkstrand, Valeno and Tolvanen add depth to the bottom six. The one loss that may be difficult to replace is Trocheck. He was a solid 2C / 3C who was excellent on face-offs, could kill penalties and was effective on the power play. His presence will be missed.

It's not a stretch to say that this is a make or break season for Drury. There's no telling what Quentin Dolan might do if the Rangers fail to make the postseason again, especially with the Knicks being so successful. Nothing pisses the Dolans off more than lost playoff revenues. 

Also on the hot seat is Mike Sullivan. The two-time Stanley Cup winning head coach begins his second season behind the New York bench. His fate is tied to Drury's. They sink or swim together.

I gave Drury a B+ during the offseason, which I thought was a fair grade. The moves he made have improved this roster. The sixty-four thousand dollar question is did they improve it enough to qualify for the postseason? That depends on the following:

Can the Rangers get enough production from their bottom six? Noah Laba, Will Cuylle and Tolvanen will have a lot to say about that. Cuylle has had back-to-back 20 goal seasons. The Rangers need him to do that again. Laba showed some promise last season, but he needs to take the next step. As for Tolvanen, he scored 23 goals for the Seattle Kraken two seasons ago. He needs to repeat that on Broadway.

Will Alexis Lafreniere finally deliver on his promise? Since he was drafted number one overall in 2020, the Rangers have been patiently waiting for Lafreniere to blossom into the player scouts thought he could be. From time to time he has shown signs of being elite. It's time for him to shit or get off the pot. The Rangers need to see consistent scoring from him to become a legit playoff team.

Will J.T. Miller regain his former scoring prowess? Last year, the expectation was that Miller would anchor the number one line and be one of the scoring leaders on this team. But an injury sustained in the preseason severely hampered his play, and Miller finished with just 53 points in 68 games. Without Trocheck, the Rangers need him to become the player he was in Vancouver when he averaged over a point per game.

Is Gabe Perrault the real deal? His hockey I.Q. is off the charts. There's no doubt he can play. But can he ascend to the next level? He had 27 points in 49 games last season, but 19 over his last 28. That comes out to 57 points over the course of a full season. He needs to improve on that to remain in the top six. Seeing action on the power play would help.

Can Adam Fox stay healthy? Last season, Fox appeared in 55 games for New York, scoring 53 points. The Rangers record with him in the lineup was 26-23-6; without him, it was 8-16-3. Clearly a healthy Fox is essential to whatever playoff hopes the Blueshirts have. He's one player they can't afford to be without.

Admittedly these are a lot of questions that need to be answered for the Rangers to make the playoffs. And here's the thing: even if they are all answered in the affirmative, there's still no guarantee that will be enough. That's because the Eastern Conference has gotten better and deeper over the last couple of years. If we assume the Hurricanes will finish first in the Metro, the Flyers and Devils - if they stay healthy - could easily finish second and third respectively. And the Atlantic is so deep, it's conceivable both wild cards will come from that division. That means if the Rangers are going to avoid the trifecta of missing the playoffs they are going to have to finish in the top three. A very tall order.

Prognosis: If everyone stays healthy, Lafreniere pops and the third line does its job, the Rangers will finish in third place in the Metro. If not, Rangers fans will finally have the satisfaction of seeing their nemesis get the boot. Some might say that's a win / win.

Prediction: 45-34-5, 95 points

Below are my predictions for the rest of the league. As per usual, I will pick the top three teams in each division, both wild cards for each conference, and the close, but no cigar contingent. 

Eastern Conference:

Metropolitan Division:

Carolina Hurricanes: They finally won a Cup in the Brind'Amour era. Now they intend to run roughshod over the league in the regular season.

Philadelphia Flyers: A good, young core that is fast and up and coming. 

New York Rangers: See my review above.

Atlantic Division:

Florida Panthers: They were decimated by injuries last season. With the exception of Brad Marchand, they're healthy now, and even without Sergie Bobrovsky, they are still a legitimate threat to get back to the finals.

Montreal Canadiens: The Habs made tremendous strides last season and appear on the verge of greatness. They have one of the most explosive lines in the NHL and the signing of Chris Kreider was a coup that could pay dividends.

Buffalo Sabres: They came out of nowhere to win the Atlantic last season after missing the playoffs 14 straight years. They are no fluke. No fanbase in the country has suffered more than Buffalo.

Wild Cards:

Tampa Bay Lightning: Never count out a Jon Cooper coached team.

Boston Bruins: Despite not being blessed with a ton of talent, this team always manages to make the postseason.

Close, but no cigar: 

Toronto Maple Leafs: They won the Marchenko / Knies trade, barely; it won't be enough to get them in.

New Jersey Devils: The injury bug will strike them again.

Western Conference: 

Central Division:

Dallas Stars: On paper they should have at least one Cup, that's how deep they are. This is the year they  finally break through.

Colorado Avalanche: I could literally cut and paste last season's prediction about them. Best top four players in the NHL. However, it's their depth that keeps tripping them up, and they did not address that in the offseason.

Utah Mammoth: I'm going out on a limb here but I think this may be the team to watch in the West, especially with Vinny Trocheck to help them.

Pacific Division:

Vegas Golden Knights: Even after losing Pavel Dorofeyev, the Knights are still the team to beat in the Pacific.

Edmonton Oilers: Could this be Connor McDavid's last season in Edmonton? That depends on what happens in the Spring.

Los Angeles Kings: Maybe it's the romantic in me but Artemi Panarin and Mats Zuccarello together on the same team intrigues me.

Wild Cards:

Minnesota Wild: Bill Guerin always seems to get his team into the postseason. Unfortunately that's as far as they go.

San Jose Sharks: Macklin Celebrini could be the best player in the NHL. And he's only 20.

Close, but no cigar:

Winnipeg Jets: You think Connor Hellebuyck knows something? 

Anaheim Ducks: Boy did Pat Verbeek really screw up this franchise. That's what he gets for dealing with Chris Drury.

Playoffs:

Eastern Conference Finals: Panthers over Hurricanes 4-2

Western Conference Finals: Stars over Golden Knights 4-3

Stanley Cup Finals: Stars over Panthers 4-3

Year End Awards:

Presidents' Trophy: Carolina Hurricanes

Art Ross Trophy: Connor McDavid, Oilers

Hart Trophy: Macklin Celebrini, Sharks

Norris Trophy: Quinn Hughes, Canucks

Vezina Trophy: Igor Shestrkin, Rangers

Jack Adams Award: Rod Brind'Amour, Hurricanes

Conn Smythe Trophy: Mikko Rantanen, Stars