Through the first 30 games of the 2019-20 season, the Rangers are 15-12-3 and have an even goal differential.
As of Thursday morning they sit:
- Sixth in the Metro Division
- Five points behind Pittsburgh for the second Wild Card spot
- 12th overall in the Eastern Conference but only three points behind Montreal for 8th
- 22nd in the NHL
MoneyPuck.com lists them as having a 26.5% chance at making the playoffs.
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The Athletic has the Rangers projected to finish the season 38-34-10 with a 11% chance of making the playoffs.
Tankathon.com has them slated to pick 12th in the first round.
They are 8-6-2 at MSG and 7-6-1 on the road.
Through 30 games last season the Rangers were 14-13-3 with a minus 10 goal differential.
Adam Rotter: Through 30 games the Rangers are just about where I expected them to be. They are around .500, in the playoff mix and while they are inconsistent, overall they have grown and are a better team than they were 15 games into the season. A lot of that has to do with solid goaltending, Artemi Panarin being better than advertised, Ryan Strome filling in while Mika Zibanejad was out, Adam Fox and Ryan Lindgren playing bigger than expected roles, and their ability to bounce back and be resilient after poor performances.
The Rangers will hit 60 games right around the trade deadline and how the team performs over these next 30 games will dictate the moves the Rangers make. They may not add, but they could certainly subtract with Chris Kreider a pending UFA, Ryan Strome a pending RFA and Alex Georgiev as an RFA with Igor Shesterkin in Hartford. I think that if given the choice, the Rangers would prefer to break their new annual tradition of selling and keep this group for a potential playoff push. That said, it’s much easier to keep Strome and Georgiev and deal with them in the offseason than allow Chris Kreider to potentially walk away for nothing.
This season for the Rangers is about progress and the Rangers are better than they were last year and better than they were two months ago and a month ago. Are they good enough to make the playoffs? Maybe not but they should finish above .500 and finish a season with a roster filled with players that may comprise their next core. Things are headed in the right direction for the Rangers but they still some building and developing to do.