Three reasons the Rangers will be taking a big step forward this season

The New York Rangers are poised to be one of the top teams in the league next season, a team that not only continues to play elite hockey but also takes another step forward in 2022-23.

The Rangers finished this past season with a record of 52-24-6. They were the second-best team in the Metropolitan Division and they went on a run to the Eastern Conference Final where they lost to the then two-time defending cup champs.

The Rangers beat the Pittsburgh Penguins in seven games, they beat the Carolina Hurricanes in seven games, and they took the Lightning to six games. While their season ended without the Stanley Cup, this is about as successful of a run that you can get out of a team just turning the corner to contention.

This was the Rangers’ first year in the playoffs since rebuilding. Their first trip to the postseason with their current stars and boy was it fun to watch.

The Rangers were led by Artemi Panarin, Mika Zibanejad and Chris Kreider on their top line. Those players were and are the driving force of this team. Behind them, the team also had players like Barclay Goodrow and Ryan Strome to help bump up the top six, and after that, it was the kids’ line making the Rangers one of the most fun teams to watch in hockey.

This was a fun team to watch in 2021-22. They were a young team trying to prove themselves for that first push to the playoffs, now the narrative is different and this roster is poised to take a bigger step forward in 2023. Let’s go over three reasons this is the New York Rangers’ year to improve.