New York Rangers greatest players of all time
Who made our list of the greatest New York Rangers? Watch and find out.
It’s that time of year when the Rangers ask beat reporters to submit their votes for team MVP, but the tenor of the conversation has a very different tone compared to recent seasons.
Given the disappointment of missing the playoffs for the first time in four years, it feels like we’re eliminating the least valuable candidates and then trying to sort through who’s left. It’s striking how many Blueshirts regressed or had seasons below their usual standards.
The team will announce the winner any day now, but for the sake of transparency, I’ll share my top-three ballot here and expand it through all 28 on the current roster, including a couple who are on injured reserve. It’s become an annual exercise in which I attempt to rank every player in a way that encapsulates all-around value.
It’s all subjective, but my goal is always to try and weigh quality of play, usage and overall impact. That’s why those who logged a full season (or close to it), as opposed to trade additions, in-season recalls and any who missed time due to injury or healthy scratches, tend to rank higher. Of course, if they performed well enough in a shorter stint, I reserve the right to push newer players up the list.
Let’s take a crack at sorting through the full roster, excluding any players who were traded, waived or otherwise didn’t finish the season in New York.
28. Matthew Robertson
It took nearly six years, but the 2019 second-round draft pick finally got to make his NHL debut Monday in Florida.
27. Nicolas Aube-Kubel
A depth winger acquired at the trade deadline, the 28-year-old appeared in only three games with the Rangers and will be a UFA this summer.
26. Arthur Kaliyev
A waiver claim from L.A. on Jan. 6, the 23-year-old never showed the pace to stick in the lineup before going down with an upper-body injury in mid-March.
25. Calvin de Haan
The 33-year-old defenseman caused more of a stir off the ice than on it by tweeting his frustration over 19 straight healthy scratches – and he may have a point. The Rangers were 2-0-1 in the games de Haan played with a 4-0 scoring advantage and 60.17% xGF while he was on the ice, according to Natural Stat Trick.
24. Gabe Perreault
The Rangers’ top prospect got what he wanted by starting his entry-level contract this season, but it hasn’t gone the way he hoped it would. He’s been scratched in three of seven possible games so far, with zero points and a 32.39% xGF in the four he’s played. A stint in the AHL may have benefited the 19-year-old winger – and could still be coming next fall.
23. Juuso Pärssinen
The 24-year-old’s first eight games in New York left much to be desired, resulting in a string of 11 scratches over 16 games in March and early April. But the pending RFA has shown signs of life with five points (two goals and three assists) in his last three appearances. He’ll likely be back next season as a depth center who could possibly be stashed with AHL Hartford.
22. Carson Soucy
The analytics, most notably a 53.24% xGF, paint a favorable picture of the 30-year-old defenseman’s first 16 games after coming over in a Mar. 6 trade with Vancouver. But the eye test hasn’t been as kind, with D-zone breakdowns, underwhelming physicality and misplayed pucks that have raised questions about whether he’s a viable solution as Adam Fox’s partner next season.
21. Brennan Othmann
The 22-year-old prospect’s scoring touch hasn’t carried over from the AHL, with zero goals and only two assists through his first 21 NHL games. But he’s looked more assertive lately while playing on a line with Artemi Panarin and Vincent Trocheck, leading to a 53.65% xGF that ranks best among Rangers’ forwards.
20. Brett Berard
Another 22-year-old winger prospect, Berard has had more scoring success than Othmann (six goals through 35 games played) but with lesser underlying numbers (45.52% xGF). He’s got work to do on the defensive end, but his speed-and-hustle combination has been a breath of fresh air on a team that badly needs those elements.
19. Urho Vaakanainen
The 26-year-old has carved out a role since coming over in the Dec. 6 trade that sent former captain Jacob Trouba to Anaheim, earning himself a two-year, $3.1 million contract extension. He’s a fine option as a depth defenseman, but the Rangers would be wise to pursue upgrades for a D corps that’s been shaky this season.
18. Zac Jones
The 24-year-old defenseman has produced better underlying numbers than Vaakanainen (47.5% xGF vs. 43.5%), but he’s struggled to earn the trust of multiple coaching staffs now. A change of scenery may be the only way for Jones to get consistent ice time.
17. Matt Rempe
There’s still some ironing out to do around the edges, but as head coach Peter Laviolette said Monday, “The growth has been visible for everybody.” The 6-foot-9, 255-pound forward isn’t just hitting and fighting but creating offensive-zone time with his thundering forecheck, causing havoc around the net and even flashing some puck skills. The pending RFA has likely earned a fourth-line role for next season.
16. Jonathan Quick
There have been some vintage performances from the 39-year-old future Hall of Famer, including three shutouts in 20 starts, but the overall numbers have sagged. An .893 save percentage and -3.89 goals saved above expected, according to Evolving Hockey, could be viewed as red flags regarding the decision to extend him for one more season. But his mentorship role in a locker room that’s desperately needed it probably makes it worth the risk.
15. Chris Kreider
We’re entering lineup regular territory, and among those, the longest-tenured Ranger may have been the most disappointing. The 33-year-old ranked third on the team with 21 goals, but that’s roughly half of the 42.3 he averaged the previous three seasons. Meanwhile, Kreider’s game declined more dramatically in other facets, with a negligible impact at five-on-five, fleeting instances when he uses his speed to pressure opposing defenses and only seven assists through 67 games. Team president Chris Drury began openly shopping him in November, creating a rift that likely trickled onto the ice. Sources around the league believe a divorce is imminent this summer.
14. Adam Edström
A lower-body injury cut the 24-year-old forward’s season short, but he had been a bright spot in 51 games prior. He brings similar size and thump to Rempe at 6-foot-7, 241 pounds with a more advanced defensive game and better skating, putting the pending RFA in line to reclaim his spot on the opposite wing of the fourth line next season.
13. Jonny Brodzinski
This season’s Masterton Trophy nominee has embraced his role as a plug-and-play forward while filling a leadership void for many of the young players on the roster. He’s played effectively in nearly every forward spot in the lineup while contributing 19 points (12 goals and seven assists) in 50 games, with eight of those goals coming in his last 16.
12. Will Borgen
The 28-year-old has been a stabilizing presence on a largely unstable D corps since coming to New York in the Dec. 18 trade that sent Kaapo Kakko to Seattle. He and K’Andre Miller hit it off right away and have taken on the toughest matchups most nights, with Borgen’s plus skating and hard-nosed defense earning him a five-year, $20.5 million extension. It’s worth noting that his metrics have lagged in recent weeks, though, raising questions about the hastiness of the deal.
11. Sam Carrick
It was a bit of a surprise to see the Rangers award the 33-year-old a three-year contract last summer, but he’s fit in well as fourth-line center and penalty killer. Opponents are averaging only 1.87 goals per 60 minutes that Carrick is on the ice, and he’s chipped in 20 points (six goals and 14 assists) to boot.
10. Alexis Lafrenière
This was supposed to be the season that the 23-year-old forward took another step coming off last year’s breakout, but it hasn’t materialized. He’s down from 57 points (28 goals and 29 assists) to 45 (17 goals and 28 assists), but it’s about more than just the numbers. Lafrenière has looked disengaged at times, particularly since inking a seven-year, $52.15 million extension in October. That’s put the Rangers in a tough spot. They could try to move on but would have to accept a discounted return. The wiser play is to probably wait and hope for a bounce back.
9. Braden Schneider
We’ve been waiting for the 23-year-old to evolve into the shutdown defenseman the Rangers believe he has the potential to be, but it hasn’t progressed much beyond a bottom-pair assignment through his first four seasons. There were incremental improvements this year, with career highs in points (21) and average TOI (17:52), the latter largely stemming from increased PK time. But it’s worth wondering how much an upper-body injury that finally shut him down this week affected his play.
8. Mika Zibanejad
The 31-year-old (he’ll turn 32 on Friday) would have finished well outside of the top 10 if not for second-half rally. The days of ranking among the NHL’s top goal-scorers seem to be a thing of the past, but Zibanejad followed up a brutal first half in which he registered only 21 points (six goals and 15 assists) and a 44.51% xGF through 36 games with 38 points (12 goals and 26 assists) and a 51.51% xGF in his last 45. That at least revived some hope he can still be a productive forward, even if it means making a more permanent move from center to right wing. But it wasn’t enough to quell concerns about his fragile confidence and future outlook, which is why the Rangers could explore moving on if No. 93 expresses an openness to lifting his no-movement clause.
7. Vincent Trocheck
While heaps of criticism are understandably landing at the feet of Kreider, Lafrenière and Zibanejad, Trocheck belongs in the same category. He was arguably New York’s most valuable all-around skater last season, particularly during the playoffs, but made a far lesser impact in 2024-25. His points total dropped from 77 to 58, and while the 31-year-old center remained a top faceoff and PK guy, his 5v5 and power play contributions fell flat. The Rangers need Trocheck to be one of their motors, but he seemed to sputter and succumb to mounting frustration.
6. K’Andre Miller
Some will claim this is too high for player who had his share of very visible hiccups this season, and they’d have a point. But the counter would be, what are the alternatives? So many Rangers regressed this season that it’s hard to fill out the top 10 with any conviction. And while the 25-year-old defenseman remains prone to ghastly turnovers and blown coverages, he also doesn’t get enough credit for plays he makes that no one else on this roster can. Miller eats big minutes (21:56 per game) against opposing team’s top forwards, with the defense faltering when anyone else gets those assignments. The Rangers went 1-7 without him in the lineup this season, which will surely come up in tricky negotiations for the pending RFA.
5. J.T. Miller
Can we justify a player who only appeared in 31 games landing into the top five? Perhaps this is too high, but it feels like we’ve said that about each of the previous five players, too. What we can say about Miller that we couldn’t about the others is that he’s one of only two Rangers to average more than a point per game this season, with 34 (13 goals and 21 assists) since coming over in a Jan. 31 trade from Vancouver. He provided an instant jolt, bringing the tenacity and north-south approach that this finesse lineup so desperately needed. But he also ran out of steam in the final month or so, making us wonder if the 32-year-old center can maintain that full-throttle playing style for the remaining five years on his contract.
4. Adam Fox
This will probably be the first time in five years that the 27-year-old finishes outside of the top five in Norris Trophy voting. He’s fallen behind the players he was once compared to, specifically Vancouver’s Quinn Hughes and Colorado’s Cale Makar, when discussing the league’s best young defensemen. That reputation took a hit at the 4 Nations Face-Off, where he tumbled down Team USA’s depth chart, but those who watch him regularly were already remarking that his dynamic playmaking ability was showing up far less frequently. But make no mistake: Fox was still one of the Rangers’ best players and remains a pillar of the franchise. Even in a down year, he’s tied for sixth among NHL D-men with 51 assists while registering a team-best 55.98% xGF.
3. Will Cuylle
I snuck the 23-year-old into my top three, not because he’s more important to the team than Fox, Trocheck, Zibanejad or either Miller, but because he’s the only one who clearly improved this season and brought it every night. Cuylle made leaps across the board in Year 2 – in goals (from 13 to 20), assists (eight to 24), rating (minus-three to plus-nine) and average TOI (11:08 to 15:05) – while bringing a blend of speed, physicality, scoring and defensive responsibility that makes him a middle-six winger the Rangers can count on moving forward. He added penalty killing to his arsenal, broke Ryan Callahan’s franchise record for hits in a season with 299 (and counting) and was a deserving recipient of the coveted Steven McDonald Extra Effort Award.
2. Artemi Panarin
The 33-year-old’s totals are way down compared to last year’s lofty career highs in points (120) and goals (49), but he easily remained the Rangers’ most dangerous and consistent offensive threat. Panarin did his best to will them down the stretch while so many others faded, tying for the NHL lead with 30 points (14 goals and 16 assists) over a 21-game stretch from Mar. 2 through New York’s playoff elimination on Saturday. He’s now led the team in points in each of his six seasons here, with a chance to break 90 for the fifth time if he can notch one more in Thursday’s season finale against the Lightning.
1. Igor Shesterkin
Imagine where the Rangers would have finished without this guy? Playing behind a shoddy defense that allowed the fourth-most scoring chances per game, according to Clear Sight Analytics, the 29-year-old goalie carried them to several wins they otherwise didn’t deserve. His 26-29-5 record and .903 save percentage were easily the worst marks of his career, but the difficulty of his workload needs to be factored in heavily. Shesterkin started a career-high 60 games with five shutouts and 26.22 GSAx, which ranked third, third and seventh in the NHL, respectively. It certainly wasn’t his best season, but given the context of the disjointed outfit that was skating in front of him, it would have been hard to award team MVP honors to anyone else.
Vincent Z. Mercogliano is the New York Rangers beat reporter for the USA TODAY Network. Read more of his work at lohud.com/sports/rangers/ and follow him on Twitter @vzmercogliano.