After suffering another defeat on Sunday night, falling 3-2 to the St. Louis Blues, the New York Rangers are urgently seeking ways to revive their performance. Having lost 10 of their last 13 games, the pressure is mounting for a team that was just two victories away from reaching the Stanley Cup Final merely seven months ago.
One of the key issues plaguing the Rangers throughout the season has been their struggle to apply sustained pressure in the offensive zone. Most of their scoring opportunities arise from rush plays, often resulting in subpar chances. The problem escalates as they fail to establish a forecheck, lose puck battles, and end up retreating to defense. “It’s the same story, right?” defenseman Adam Fox remarked after the game on Sunday. “Just kind of one and done in the O-zone. We haven’t maintained many cycles or sustained pressure to force them to defend. It always seems to come back to bite us.”
The Rangers’ best offensive performance during this rough 3-10-0 stretch came when they scored five goals against the Seattle Kraken, yet they still lost 7-5 in a messy outing. Over their last four games, they’ve managed just seven goals and hold a 1-3-0 record. Regardless of how coach Peter Laviolette adjusts the lines, whether through minor tweaks or complete overhauls, the Rangers continue to find it difficult to produce consistent offense.
What began as a minor slump has rapidly turned into a critical phase of the season. If their current trend continues, the Rangers might find themselves aiming for a lottery pick rather than competing to advance in the Eastern Conference. It seems this has become more of a psychological battle for the team. “I can’t even describe how it feels right now,” Fox admitted. “It’s definitely not a good situation. We communicate as a group and encourage each other to stay engaged, but it takes a toll when you’re caught in a losing streak like this.”
Repeatedly, the Rangers have found themselves on the back foot for most of the game, rather than dictating the pace. In Saturday’s game against the Los Angeles Kings, they fell into a 5-0 hole before scoring a single goal that earned a sarcastic cheer from the disappointed Madison Square Garden crowd. On Sunday, they found themselves down 3-0 but fought back with goals from Brett Berard and Will Cuylle in the third period; however, it wasn’t enough. The question remains: where were they during the first 50 minutes of the game?
“We’ve definitely felt deflated in games, and it creates a spiral effect,” Fox explained. “The same messages keep being shared, but we need results. We can score a couple to make a comeback and say it was a good effort, but ultimately, it’s about securing wins and points. And right now, we’re not doing that.”
Currently at 15-14-1, the Rangers are fortunate to be just one point shy of a wild-card spot, though they sit eight points behind a top-three position in the Metropolitan Division. While there’s still a chance to turn the season around, time is of the essence before decisions are made. With 53 games left in the regular season, they have an opportunity to secure a win against the last-place Nashville Predators, who hold an 8-17-6 record. If any team has struggled more than New York this season, it would be Nashville, despite their offseason additions like Steven Stamkos, Jonathan Marchessault, and Brady Skjei.
It remains to be seen if the Rangers can claim what should be an easy victory. After all, they recently lost to the last-place Chicago Blackhawks, so they cannot afford to underestimate any opponent.
The Rangers need to focus on playing a more complete offensive game by emphasizing hard work, winning puck battles, and maintaining positional soundness. Whether they can achieve this remains uncertain, as they haven’t demonstrated these qualities consistently throughout the season.
