When the Rangers return from the All-Star break tonight they will have a record of 21-20-7 and a 2.9 % chance of making the playoffs according to Sports Club Stats.
The Rangers are 9 points out of the final wild card spot and six points ahead of last place Ottawa in the East.
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The Rangers have a goal differential of minus five and are 13-6-5 at home and 8-14-2 on the road.
Tankathon has the Rangers with a 6.6% chance getting a top 3 pick and a 2% chance of getting the number one overall pick.
In early January, Rangers owner James Dolan said that he doesn’t want his teams to tank and that he is happy with David Quinn and where the team is going. (Newsday)
Dolan said that the Rangers are “staying the course” and going through a “development year” but that Henrik Lundqvist has the ability to “carry the team.” (Newsday &NY Post)
Adam Rotter: The Rangers are about where I thought they would be at this point of the season. They’ve let some points get away that would bring them closer to a playoff spot, but for the most part the Rangers are the .500 team that I think they should be. If the Rangers want to make a run at the playoffs it has to start tonight and it has to feature better special teams, especially the PK, similar play from Henrik Lundqvist, Chris Kreider and Mika Zibanejad, consistency from Brett Howden, Filip Chytil and Tony DeAngelo and guys like Ryan Strome and Pavel Buchnevich to play up to their potential. More than likely though the Rangers are going to continue to sputter around .500, trade some more players and play the last part of the season hoping that the young players are developing.
The biggest questions for the rest of the season are about the future of Kevin Hayes, how Pavel Buchnevich responds, how the defense is constructed/who gets called up and where Lias Andersson is. The Hayes situation will be resolved in the next month, he’s either signing a long-term deal or getting traded. Buchnevich has to find consistency and show he can be more than a third-liner and PP guy. The defense will be interesting as Tony DeAngelo should get a regular spot but Freddy Claesson will be back at some point, Ryan Lindgren is likely the next man up on defense and I’m sure they want to get a look at Libor Hajek in the NHL. Then there is Lias Andersson. He’s going to be back and he’s going to play but on what line and what position, center or wing, are still to be determined.