The New York Rangers are one of the favorites to win the President’s Trophy as the top team during the regular season. The last time they won the trophy was during the 2014-15 season and to end that season, they went to Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Final losing to the Tampa Bay Lightning. As of this writing, they currently have a one-point lead over the Dallas Stars for the top spot in the entire league. Winning the Presidents Trophy would give the Rangers home ice throughout the entire playoffs and that could be a huge advantage. When looking at the 2014-15 team that won the trophy, there are some similarities between that team and this one. Let’s look at some of these similarities and see what, or who could be the difference-maker as the playoffs get closer.
Both Teams Led By an Elite Scorer
Artemi Panarin is currently having the best season of his career and he is been carrying the offense for the Rangers for the majority of the season. He currently has 110 points in 76 games played and is 35 points ahead of his next closest teammate, Vincent Trocheck, who has 75 points. Back in 2014-15, the offense was led by Rick Nash, who scored 42 goals and 69 points in 79 games played. Back then, scoring was not as high as it is today, as scoring 42 goals was seen as an incredible milestone and for Nash, it was his best season with the Rangers and the most amount of goals he scored in a single season throughout his entire career. The next closest players in terms of goals scored were Chris Kreider and Marty St.Louis with 21 goals.
Both of these teams were and are led by one player who is doing the majority of the goal scoring and another similarity is that both players were coming off seasons where they were criticized for not scoring enough. For Panarin, his playoff performance last season was abysmal and many were calling for him to be traded. Now, he turned his game around is fourth in the league in terms of points, and is sixth in terms of goals scored. For Nash, he also had a poor playoff performance with only three goals in 25 games when the Rangers made it to the Stanley Cup Final. He followed it up with the best goal-scoring season of his career and helped the team win the Presidents Trophy. Both of these players were criticized and both of them had and are having the best seasons of their career and are helping the team win big in the process.
A Solid Top Six Defensive Group
In 2014-15, the Rangers had a top-six defense that was one of the top defensive groups in the league. It was led by the captain at the time, Ryan McDonagh. He was surrounded by Dan Girardi, Marc Staal, Keith Yandle, Kevin Klein, and Dan Boyle. While this group might not have the skill and talent that the 2024 team has, they were good at doing their job in shutting down the other team while also providing some offense when they could. Girardi and Staal were still good at defending as their bodies still had some game left in them. Boyle, while nearing the end of his career, was solid on both sides of the puck. Yandle was brought in at the 2015 Trade Deadline and was a big addition as he would be on the team for not only the rest of that season but for the next season as well. Klein was a fan favorite and provided some great moments during his three-and-a-half season with the team.
Related: Rangers’ Quick Could Be A Playoff X-Factor
The 2023-24 defensive group is definitely more talented and has a higher upside than the 2014-15 group. Adam Fox alone makes this group that much better as the 2014-15 team didn’t have a talent like him on it and if he was on that team, maybe they could have won the Stanley Cup. Ryan Lindgren and Jacob Trouba are this team’s version of Girardi and Staal as they are the more defensive-minded players of his group. K’Andre Miller has all the talent in the world on both sides of the puck and if he can get his game to a more consistent level, he will be a big problem for other teams. Braden Schneider and Erik Gustafsson make up the third pair and they are the best third pair the Rangers have had in a few seasons. They are both reliable and complement each other’s games. Both of these teams’ defensive groups are solid this year’s defense could be a key factor in helping lead the team to the first Stanley Cup in 30 years.
A Great Goaltending Tandem
The backbone of both of these teams are the goaltenders. Henrik Lundqvist was in the prime of his career and although he did miss time during the regular season due to injury, he still played extremely well during the games he played and was outstanding during the playoffs. He had a 30-13-3 record during the regular season with a 2.25 goals against average and a .922 save percentage (SV%). He then went 11-8 with a 2.11 GAA and a .928 SV% during the playoffs. When he was injured, it was Cam Talbot’s net and he proved he could be a starter in the NHL. He went 21-9-4 with a 2.21 GAA and a .926 SV%. He stepped up when he needed too and he was a key factor in the Rangers winning the Presidents Trophy that season.
The Rangers went from one franchise goalie to another as they now have Igor Shesterkin leading the way and he has proven that he is one of the best goalies in the league over the past few seasons. He won the Vezina Trophy in 2021-22 as the league’s best goalie and was the only reason why the Rangers went to Game 7 last season against New Jersey. He has had his ups and downs this season, but overall, he’s played well. When he has struggled, Jonathan Quick has been there and has played at the top of his game every night he plays. He has had a career resurgence, and it even led to him getting a contract extension for next season. The Rangers yet again have another great goaltending duo and if one of them struggles, the other is there to help carry the load.
While the Rangers might not win the President’s Trophy, they are still one of the best teams in the league and will be a problem for any team going against them in the playoffs. They have the elite goal-scoring, strong defense, and great goaltending that you need to get the job done. The 2014-15 team fell just short of making it to the Stanley Cup Final, but this season’s team is looking to finish the story once and for all.
