Though Mike Sullivan is only weeks into his first season in charge, the New York Rangers are growing impatient. Meanwhile, results are not coming by in the 2025-26 NHL season, making the climb even steeper. Following the 3-2 defeat to the Utah Mammoth, a star on the team voiced an unminced postgame reflection.
Mika Zibanejad has often found himself in the eye of the storm in Manhattan. Being a star on the Rangers isn’t for everybody. Facing the fans and media in a market like New York is no easy task. Zibanejad has had his fair share of experience, and he knows when it’s best to say the hard truth and when it’s better to save it.
However, following the Rangers’ fourth-straight loss in the NHL, Zibanejad wore his heart on a sleeve, delivering a straightforward admission. Needless to say, Zibanejad’s comments won’t go unnoticed by Sullivan and company.
“I feel like we’re disconnected,” Mika Zibanejad commented postgame, via The New York Post. “I think we’re too far away from each other. It’s a lot of one-and-dones in the O-zone, try to get on the forecheck, it’s one guy, one guy, one guy. We don’t come up with five together and I just feel like we’re a bit late everywhere.”
New York Rangers star Mika Zibanejad
Sullivan is put on notice
Though Zibanejad’s comments didn’t aim towards Sullivan and the coaching staff directly, they did shine the light on the looming issues in New York City. Two things can be true, nevertheless.
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Since Sullivan arrived in The Big Apple from the City of Bridges, he hasn’t been able to build a distinguishable identity. On the contrary, the Broadway Blueshirts have become chameleons, changing colors night in and night out. Still, the Rangers weren’t any better off last season — under Peter Laviolette. Perhaps, it’s time for the Rangers to take a hard look in the mirror.
Rangers are losing on the road, too
If there’s been one trend upheld all season long, it’s that New York underperformed at home and delivered on the road. However, even that trait is now slipping away. Heading into a three-game road trip against some of the best teams in the Western Conference, New York boasted a 9-1-1 away mark.
That record has now fallen to 9-4-1, with three consecutive losses in regulation. As the Blueshirts return to Madison Square Garden—where they are 1-7-1 this season—Sullivan, Zibanejad, and company can only hope that their struggles away from NYC signal better nights ahead in The Big Apple.
SurveyWho is most to blame for the Rangers’ rough start to the season?
Who is most to blame for the Rangers’ rough start to the season?