The 2025-26 NHL season is still over three months away from beginning at the time of this writing. The New York Rangers hope that this season is going to be better than the disaster that was last season. The entire team fell apart due to off-ice drama, and it truly derailed a season in which they should have been contenders for the Stanley Cup. With there still being so much time left between now and the start of the season, this is the perfect time to make some way-too-early predictions for the upcoming season. In this piece, we are going to look at three predictions that could come true for the Rangers this season.
Adam Fox Silences the Doubters, Wins His Second Norris Trophy
One of the more interesting topics of conversation that has arisen over this offseason has been the play of Adam Fox. While it’s true that he didn’t have the best season of his career last season, it’s not totally on him, as the team around him was falling apart, and his defensive partners were also not ideal. He also had a poor showing at the 4 Nations Face-Off, which did not help him win over any new fans. He did miss some time last season due to injury, but he still managed to put up 10 goals and 61 points in 74 games played. The season prior, he had 17 goals and 73 points in 82 games played. So, while his offense did dip slightly, he was still amazing defensively and was still the best defenseman on the team by far on both sides of the puck.
Adam Fox, New York Rangers (Jess Starr/The Hockey Writers)
Going into this season, things should only be looking up for Fox. He’s finally going to have a reliable defensive partner in Vladislav Gavrikov, who could help to take some of the defensive burden off of him to let him contribute more offensively. He is also a key component of the Rangers’ power play, which ranked 28th in the entire league last season after finishing third the season prior. The Rangers have too much talent for the power play to struggle that badly again, so a rejuvenated power play under a new coach will help him make up for some of the points he didn’t have last season. If he is able to stay healthy and the Rangers get back on track, he could be walking away with the second Norris Trophy of his career when this season is over.
Artemi Panarin Gets Traded by the Deadline if Rangers Are Not in a Playoff Spot
Another big question the Rangers are going to have to answer going into this season is what they will do with Artemi Panarin. He is entering the final year of his contract that he signed back in 2019, and he has been worth every penny of that deal so far. He is arguably the best free agent signing in NHL history, and he is looking to get paid once again next offseason. He has scored 186 goals and 550 points in 430 games played as a Ranger so far in his career. That is 121 more points than his next closest teammate. Panarin has been everything the Rangers hoped he would be, but now, the question is what a potential extension would look like, and should the Rangers even make that decision this offseason?
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Depending on how the Rangers perform this season, Panarin could be the top name on the market when the trade deadline rolls around if they find themselves on the outside looking in. He would bring back a major return despite being a pending unrestricted free agent. They also have to consider that there could be other big names hitting the free agent market next offseason, like Connor McDavid and Jack Eichel, and having money tied up in a Panarin extension might not be the best idea. The smart move would be to wait and see how this season plays out before giving money out to Panarin. If this season does go poorly, look for him to be traded at the deadline in a massive deal that sends him to a Stanley Cup contender.
Mika Zibanejad Bounces Back as a Full-Time Right Winger
Last season started out very poorly for Mika Zibanejad. He looked like a shell of his former self, as it seemed like he couldn’t score, couldn’t defend, and just looked lost out there. It wasn’t until the Rangers traded for J.T. Miller that the season turned around for Zibanejad. They moved him to the right wing on Miller’s line, and he saw immediate success. Before the trade, he had scored nine goals and 29 points. After he was moved to the right wing, he scored 11 goals and 33 points in 32 games played to end the season. While it would’ve been nice to see him playing to that level earlier in the season, he ended the season on a high note, and now, going into this season, it seems like he has found a spot where he is the most comfortable.
Mika Zibanejad of the New York Rangers celebrates after scoring a goal during the first period against the Carolina Hurricanes in Game One of the Second Round of the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs (Photo by Josh Lavallee/NHLI via Getty Images)
While the Rangers could have a great trio of centers if they had Miller, Zibanejad, and Vincent Trocheck each centering their own line, it has become clear that Zibanejad plays his best hockey when he is on the wing and doesn’t have to be as defensively responsible because he has someone else playing center instead of him. While he could start at center to begin the season, the best move for him is to stay on the right wing of Miller and see how that plays out as the season goes along. There were rumors that he could have been moved this offseason, but with a full no-move clause, it seems he wants to be here and help turn this team around. The Rangers need Zibanejad to bounce back this season if they want any chance of getting back to the playoffs, and having him play on the wing full-time seems like the best option for him.
The Rangers are going to be one of the more interesting teams to watch this season. After all the drama that unfolded last season and the trades they have made to shake up the roster, this season has to be better than last year, because if it isn’t, even more drastic changes will be coming to this roster. It’s still very early to try and predict what will happen, but these are three predictions that could come true for the Rangers this season.
