Have you ever seen that one couple who spends 10 minutes absolutely torching each other in public, then the next 10 minutes making out like they’re auditioning for a reality show, only to cap it all off with a blowout so nuclear it makes the neighbors call the cops? That’s the 2024-25 New York Rangers. This squad is as toxic as any relationship ever aired on the 27 legendary seasons of the Jerry Springer Show.
Where did it all go wrong? How did we go from a team that was knocking on the Stanley Cup Final’s door to this dumpster fire? Simple: they have nobody to blame but themselves. The same glaring issues that have kept this team from being anything more than soft-ass pretenders just keep showing up like a bad ex. Top to bottom, this organization lacked accountability, skated around in a delusional fantasy world where things were supposed to “just happen,” and somehow convinced themselves that work ethic was optional. Instead of adopting a hard work, fuck you* mentality, the Rangers spent the year acting like a spoiled rich girl throwing a fit because daddy wouldn’t buy her a Range Rover on My Super Sweet 16.
You can’t expect to win a Stanley Cup when your team is one bus full of passengers with a very limited number of drivers. And let’s talk about those passengers. Chris Kreider and Mika Zibanejad should be absolutely ashamed of themselves for this season. Beta 1 and Beta 2 spent the year looking like they belonged in a non-contact beer league—or better yet, an 82-game paint-and-sip retreat. If these two had played in the 80s or 90s—hell, even the early 2000s—they’d have spent every game getting purple nurples, wet willies, and their underwear pulled over their heads. Can you imagine putting on a Rangers jersey with a letter on it and looking in the mirror only to see those two? Maybe that’s where the problem starts.
Speaking of players who bring absolutely zero juice, what the hell happened to Alexis Lafrenière? The guy went from a first-overall pick to skating around like he’s just waiting for his shift to end so he can grab a smoothie – or I guess a salad.
Someone tell his PR team that in the middle of a race in which he hasn’t done anything, it might not be a great idea to be pitching salads. It’s 2025, and we’ve had a lot of investigations, but I’d like one launched into this kid’s disappearance. Why is he just going through the motions? Why, after years of mediocrity, has he still not adapted his game to bring even the slightest bit of physicality? The younger recent guys—Lafrenière, Kakko, Chytil, Othmann, etc.—have had their development completely butchered because they’ve spent their careers learning how to be pros from two guys who ghost the playoffs like they’re dodging child support.
Ever see one of those videos where some lunatic keys a car or lights a dumpster on fire and you just know their kids are doomed? That’s the Rangers’ locker room. And this offseason, it NEEDS to be fixed. Othmann, Berard, Perreault—these kids need to be surrounded by actual gamers, not two guys who eskimo kiss as they skip off the Garden ice.
Could this have been fixed? Sure. But here’s the issue—nobody even tried. The glaring problems with Kreider and Zibanejad were never addressed, never corrected, and just left to fester like an untreated infection. The lack of accountability on this team is as nonexistent as the number of guys willing to drop the mitts. And leading the charge in this circus? Head coach Peter Laviolette, who has essentially given the vets a free pass to do whatever they want, whenever they want, with zero repercussions. If that’s the case, then seriously—what’s the point of even having a coach?
We can all sit here and pretend these guys are adults who understand accountability, but let’s look at the facts. Kreider, a supposed leader on this team, has put up four assists this season. FOUR. For $6.5 million. And how many times has he been scratched? Twice. That’s it. Two games. Meanwhile, Zibanejad spent half the season firing pucks 10 feet wide, refusing to backcheck, and generally being a non-factor. Was he ever benched? Was he ever told to step up his game? Nope.
I’m gonna keep hammering these so-called leaders because they deserve it, but let’s not pretend this isn’t enabled by coaching and management. Laviolette let this happen. Drury let this happen. The entire organization watched this team become a country club for underperforming veterans and just shrugged. It’s a joke.
What does the future hold? No clue. But I do know this—if the Rangers don’t add more drivers to this locker room and fix their pathetic defense, they’re gonna be lost for a long, long time.
The good news? There are some pieces here. Give JT Miller the C. Give Will Cuylle an A. Adam Fox is still out here putting up near point-per-game numbers from the backend, and Igor Shesterkin remains an elite goaltender (though I wouldn’t blame him if he wants to start throwing punches at his own teammates). There are some legit prospects on the way—Perrault, hopefully a full-time Othmann, and of course, they’re still the New York Rangers, which means free agents will always pick up the phone.
But this needs to be a full-blown organizational shift—from management to coaching to the entire damn depth chart. Go out and get players who get pissed off when they take a punch. Find guys who play with even an ounce of pride. I’d rather spend 2-3 years building a real team with actual heart than slapping another lazy-ass bandaid on a roster full of passengers.
Enough of the country club. Time to build a team that gives a shit.
The Morning Skate 