ST. LOUIS – The Rangers need help. They need someone who can score goals.
The team called up prospects Gabe Perreault and Brennan Othmann from Hartford Wednesday, but will that be enough?
Their 88 goals scored this season is 28th in the league, and their 2.51 goals per game is the league’s third-lowest scoring average. They’ve been shut out seven times in 35 games, which puts them on pace to be shut out 16 times. That would tie the modern record (Columbus, 2006-07) for most times being shut out in a season. Chicago (1928-29) holds the overall record of 20.
What’s happened to the Rangers at home this season is positively uncanny. They are 4-10-3 (and have been shut out six times) at Madison Square Garden, while going 12-5-1 on the road. The thing is, though, they’ve probably played most of their best games at home – they just haven’t found ways to win. It’s impossible to win if you don’t score.
They were dominant against Washington but were robbed by goalie Charlie Lindgren in a 1-0 loss in their second home game. They played great in their next home game, against Edmonton, shutting Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl down until McDavid got an assist on the empty-net goal in a 2-0 loss. They had great games back-to-back-to-back against Western Conference elites Dallas, Colorado and Vegas, going overtime in all three and coming out 1-0-2; they were great in a 5-4 OT win over Montreal, and in their last game Tuesday, they lost 3-0 to Vancouver but felt, again, that they played well enough to win.
“It could have been 5-2 (Rangers),’’ captain J.T. Miller said after the Vancouver game. “In the moment, you just think, ‘It has to come, it has to come.’ And then you get down to three minutes (left) and you look up and it’s 2-0 (Vancouver) and you can’t believe you’re pulling the goalie again.’’
All the players said they simply must find some way to score goals, especially at home. But they keep pointing to how many scoring chances they’re creating as a sign that they’re playing well. As coach Mike Sullivan has said on numerous occasions, even though they haven’t been scoring, they’ve created plenty of offense.
So what can they do differently?
“Bear down,’’ Miller said. “I don’t think we’ve talked a lot about bearing down on our chances, but that’s something we can definitely improve on.’’
They called up Perreault and Othmann Wednesday and returned forwards Brett Berard and Jaroslav Chmelar to Hartford. Perreault, their first-round pick in 2023 was Hartford’s leading scorer with 10 goals and 17 points in 20 games. He should get a real look on one of the top two lines. Othmann, their 2021 first-round pick, seems to be running out of chances to make the team full time. He’ll presumably get a run in Berard’s spot on the third line.
But will calling up two prospects from the minor leagues solve the problem? Or will GM Chris Drury have to make a trade to bring in a veteran goal-scorer? The rumor mill has been quiet as far as veteran scorers available for trade, but Nashville’s Steven Stamkos’ name has been out there.
Stamkos, 35, is in the second year of a four-year, $32 million deal he signed as a free agent in 2024, and with the Predators sitting at 13-15-4 before Wednesday’s home game against Carolina, it’s assumed they’ll be looking to sell off assets soon. Could Stamkos help the Rangers? Well, he’s got 594 career goals, including 12 this season (more than anyone on the Rangers). He scored four goals in one game last week against St. Louis.
Reportedly, the hang-up for the Predators is they don’t want to retain salary if they do trade Stamkos. The Rangers don’t have room under the salary cap to acquire Stamkos’ $8 million cap hit unless they can create some space somehow. Alexis Lafreniere has a $7.45 million cap hit, though. Maybe Drury and Preds GM Barry Trotz could have a coffee together when the Rangers visit Nashville Sunday night, and talk about that.
Would it be prudent for the Rangers to trade a 24-year-old Lafreniere for the 35-year-old Stamkos? Not in the long term, obviously, but the Rangers need help right now. The Eastern Conference wild-card race is crowded, and if the Rangers want to burst out of the crowd, they might need to do something drastic.
Colin Stephenson covers the Rangers for Newsday. He has spent more than two decades covering the NHL and just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.