On Monday night, after a 5-1 loss to the New Jersey Devils, New York Rangers players spoke quietly, trying to figure out how to turn their season around.
One of the team’s biggest stars, whose struggles have come to embody the broader team slump, offered perhaps the most thought-provoking response.
Mika Zibanejad summed up the Rangers’ mindset after their 5-1 loss to the Devils:
“It’s gotta be a balance of desperation, but also a cool head, too,” he said. “It’s not the best of times, maybe, right now, obviously losing a lot of games. But we still have to battle, still have to work. There’s nothing else, there’s no magic. We just have to keep working and find a way.”
Zibanejad’s perspective makes sense. The Rangers need to bring more urgency, particularly from the opening shift, to avoid the sluggish starts that have plagued them during their 8-10-0 stretch. A consistent, 60-minute effort is essential to breaking out of this slump — something that has been rare for the team this season. How many full-game efforts have they truly delivered? Not many.
At the same time, as Zibanejad emphasized, maintaining a “cool head” is just as critical. Desperation without discipline leads to chaotic, unstructured hockey, which often backfires. Success requires attention to detail, which stems from calm, focused play. That’s what prevents costly errors like Jesper Bratt’s 2-on-1 goal just 1:27 into Monday’s game or the numerous breakaways the Devils exploited throughout the night. Playing smart, controlled hockey is the key to reducing these lapses and turning things around.
Mika Zibanejad expressed confidence in the team’s attitude and determination to turn things around but emphasized, “That has to translate on to the ice.”
Unfortunately for the Rangers, little has translated effectively in the past month. Monday’s 5-1 loss to the Devils marked their sixth defeat in the past seven games, including a five-game losing streak. Defensive breakdowns, ineffective one-and-done offense, poor 5v5 metrics, and even occasional lapses in goaltending have derailed a once-promising 5-0-1 start to the season.
Even their lone recent victory — a 4-3 win over the Canadiens on Saturday — offered more concern than reassurance. They barely escaped with the win against a team ranked 30th overall, squandering a two-goal lead in the third period before securing the result. While it ended the losing streak, it was far from the complete, polished performance the team desperately needs.
Then came Monday’s debacle, as the Devils rolled into Madison Square Garden and delivered a gut-punch to a struggling Rangers team, further exposing the cracks in their game.
Rangers finding ‘different ways to lose right now,’ according to Chris Kreider
Interestingly, some Rangers found reasons for optimism following the loss to the Devils. Adam Fox noted that the team played well at times, particularly after falling behind 2-0 and again later in the game. This sentiment might stem from the Rangers firing 39 shots at Jacob Markstrom and outshooting an opponent for the first time in seven games — a small but notable improvement.
Vincent Trocheck, who was arguably the team’s best player on Monday with nearly 24 minutes of ice time and seven shots on goal, echoed this cautiously positive outlook. Among his opportunities were several Grade-A scoring chances, demonstrating his strong effort despite the defeat.
“It sounds crazy, but tonight I felt we played better,” Trocheck said.
His comments could be viewed as optimistic — or as an indictment of how poorly the Rangers have performed recently. Perhaps it’s a little of both.
Vincent Trocheck followed his optimistic remarks with a candid assessment of what the Rangers need to do to turn things around.
“We’re in a funk. Everyone here’s gotta play outside their comfort zone. Obviously, what we’re doing is not working, so it’s going to take something different,” Trocheck said. “Guys that are usually playmakers and scoring goals are going to have to chip it in and grind it out. Guys that aren’t usually hitting have to start hitting. We just have to get out of our comfort zone and dig our way out of this.”
Chris Kreider, who scored the Rangers’ lone goal against the Devils, also pointed to some positive takeaways, noting that their structure “was better.” However, he was less convinced by Adam Fox’s suggestion that the third period, when the Rangers outshot the Devils 9-3 while trailing 5-1, was a sign of improvement.
“When you’re down 5-1, it’s easier to put pressure on the other team,” Kreider said bluntly before adding, “We’re finding different ways to lose right now instead of finding ways to win.”
The Rangers returned to practice on Tuesday and will skate again Wednesday before taking Thursday off. They’ll have an opportunity to back up their words with action on Friday, hosting the struggling Pittsburgh Penguins. A win would not only earn two crucial points in the standings but also give the team a chance to prove they can dig out of this slump.
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