Your New York Rangers 2015-16 Season Preview

[Commish Bub(NYR)]

2014-15 Record: 54-19-9 (117 pts)

Prediction: 2nd, Metropolitan Division

What to Expect: After two years of serious rebuilding, the Rangers stormed back in a major way to take their division, finish first in the East, and second overall to the Calgary Flames. How did they do it? The numbers tell most of the story: special teams units that went from bottom-five in both PK and PP to the top ten each; and a goal differential that went from -49 to +52, a 111-goal swing. GM Pat Webber credits a few basic changes to last season's lineup: "We brought in a couple of vets to stabilize some key areas, notably Patrik Elias for responsible two-way play on the top line, Paul Martin to stabilize the D, and reliable two-way players like Trent Hunter, Johan Larsson, and Kyle Chipchura to shore up the bottom lines." Add in the maturation of 2013 draft picks Nathan MacKinnon and Seth Jones, the rapid ascent of grinder deluxe Anton Slepyshev, and the late pre-season addition of Daniel Gunnarsson to the blueline, and last year's team took on a whole new look from previous editions.

But, Webber cautions, Rangers faithful shouldn't expect an exact repeat of last season. "We got off to a tremendously hot start, our top line (Elias-Corey Perry-PM Bouchard) were each producing at more than a point per game, and I think no one expected us to be competitive. This year we won't have that advantage." Additionally, that top line will be without Elias, who was not re-signed after the season. Instead, Bouchard will slide over to the left side and MacKinnon will man the top RW slot. "Our top line will be a bit of an experiment to start out with, in that there might be some...lack of discipline where two-way play is needed." The team also traded regulars David Elsner, Ryan Martindale, and Dan Girardi and let Lauri Korpikoski go to free agency.

For this season, Webber took more of a hands-off approach to putting together the opening night lineup. Jarret Stoll was acquired from Pittsburgh for Girardi, but he'll miss the first month of the season with an arm injury. (The only other free agent signings were minor-leaguers AJ Jenks and Harri Sateri.) Instead of building from without, the team will re-supply from within. Look for several rookies to get major playing time right off the bat, with five first-year players in the starting lineup. Biggest of all will be winger Michael Dal Colle, who figures to start on the 2nd line with Slepyshev and Adam Gilmour, for what should be a bruising and challenging line to play against. Dal Colle, only 19, tallied 7 points in an 8-game stint with the Rangers last season, and also scored 3 goals in the playoffs. He already looks like a seasoned vet on the ice, and only figures to get better. "He's definitely still growing," said Webber, "and I think he'll be one of the best power forwards in the league by this time next year. Hopefully sooner." Joining MDC on Broadway will be four other rookie forwards: 4th-round steal Curtis Valk (a potential 1st or 2nd line two-way power forward), center Elias Lindholm (acquired from Ottawa last off-season, with the potential to be a first-line playmaking and penalty-killing machine), winger Nicholas Paul (a hard-working bottom line banger with a nice shot), and Saku Salminen (a steady two-way player in the Jim Slater mode, with more offensive upside). Also hitting the big league ice for his first full EHEC season (although he looked solid in 23 games last year) is D Hampus Lindholm. (Plus, fellow rookie blueliner Damon Severson is penciled in as the 7th D to start the year.)

Back for his 11th season in net for the Rangers is Henrik Lundqvist, who was the happy recipient of the roster changes made last summer, and hopes to keep benefiting from this summer's refits. While the forward corps has no true superstars, what it does feature are four solid lines that can roll with any team in the league, with solid, consistent, two-way play and the ability to score from top to bottom. The core group of defensemen looks solid as well. Ryan McDonagh, Seth Jones, Shea Theodore, and Martin, Gunnarsson, and Lindholm probably don't hit anyone's top ten list, but together they constitute a deep and positionally solid unit.

There are the makings of another big season in the EHEC here, if all the pieces come together like they did last season. "There's been a lot of movement this off-season, with a lot of teams making some big trades and some major refittings to try to jump to the top of the standings. I won't be at all surprised to see, say, three or four or five new teams get in the playoffs this season, which means some good teams are going to be very disappointed come April. Let's hope we're not one of them." Amen to that.

Best-case Scenario: MacK thrives on the top line, Dal Colle bruises his way to 30+ goals, and the rest of the Met Division beats up on each other enough to get the Rangers to the top again.

Worst-case Scenario: Lundqvist slips to his 2013-14 form, the team misses vets Girardi and Elias, and the youngsters don't mesh as hoped, putting the team in the bottom of the playoff mix and fighting for a spot in the post-season.

Who to Watch: Dal Colle is the first to come to mind, and if he gels with his linemates, he could threaten to score a point a game. It's also possible, during the long grind of a season, that he'll see some action on the 1st line, should a shake-up prove necessary.

But important roles will also be played by Valk and Hampus Lindholm. Valk could bring important secondary scoring, and could become something more, if needs must. And Lindholm must hit the ground running to keep the 2nd power play unit humming. He also needs to keep developing his defensive game to maintain a regular spot in the lineup.

Bubbling up on the farm, keep your eyes on future power forwards/serial killers Aidan Muir and Jason Cotton, and offensive D Eric Roy.