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MSG Has Turned Into Real Home Ice Advantage for NY Rangers

The New York Rangers have a major home ice advantage when playing at Madison Square Garden.
Kenneth Teape|
Nov 5, 2026; New York, New York, USA; New York Rangers left wing Tye Kartye (24) celebrates his game winning goal against the Philadelphia Flyers with New York Rangers defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov (44) during the third period at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Dennis Schneidler-Imagn Images
Nov 5, 2026; New York, New York, USA; New York Rangers left wing Tye Kartye (24) celebrates his game winning goal against the Philadelphia Flyers with New York Rangers defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov (44) during the third period at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Dennis Schneidler-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

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New York Rangers

There was a lot that went wrong for the New York Rangers during the 2025-26 NHL regular season, but easily the most disappointing was how they performed at Madison Square Garden.

Their struggles at The World’s Most Famous Arena were well documented. The Rangers couldn’t score on their home ice, getting shut out five times in their first seven games there before finally breaking through with a win on Nov. 10.

New York ended the season 14-20-7 on their home ice last season, winning only 10 games in regular time. Improving at home was one point of emphasis for the team coming into the 2026-27 campaign, and they have succeeded.

By the time it took the Rangers to win one game at MSG last season, they already racked up eight victories this season after defeating the Philadelphia Flyers ahead of a four-game West Coast trip.

Rangers have been dominating at home this season

Those eight wins at home and 16 points are both the most in the NHL. Their 8-2-0 record is the second-most victories through 10 games played at MSG in franchise history, behind only the 9-0-1 record that was recorded in the 1972-72 season.

The biggest turnaround for New York has been on the offensive end. They have yet to be shut out at home thus far this season and are scoring at an incredible rate. As shared by NHL.com, they have scored at least three goals in nine of their home games; the only time they didn’t was against the Edmonton Oilers on Oct. 31.

Their 39 goals scored at home are the second most in the League. Five different players are playing at a point-per-game level at Madison Square Garden this season: Adam Fox, Alexis Lafreniere, Mika Zibanejad, J.T. Miller and Tye Kartye.

Out of the 24 skaters who have been in the lineup for a home game this season, only two of them have a plus/minus ratio that isn’t neutral or positive: Matt Rempe at -1 and Pavel Dorofeyev at -5.

Bringing it all together has been the performance of Dylan Garand. He is being counted on to carry an incredibly heavy load, appearing in 12 consecutive games, with 10 of those being starts.

At home, he has been a superstar. The win over the Flyers was his fifth at MSG this season, which ties him for the second-most among goalies at home this season. Among players who have started at least five games at home, he is second with a goals-against average of 1.97 and third with a save percentage of .926.

This level of dominance on home ice is going to help keep the Rangers in the Eastern Conference playoff race.

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Kenneth Teape
KENNETH TEAPE

Kenneth Teape is an alumnus of SUNY Old Westbury and graduated in 2013 with an Honors Degree in Media Communications with a focus on print journalism. During his time at Old Westbury, he worked for the school newspaper and several online publications, such as Knicks Now, the official website of the New York Knicks, and a self-made website with fellow students, Gotham City Sports News. Kenneth has also been a site expert at Empire Writes Back, Musket Fire, and Lake Show Life within the FanSided Network. He was a contributor to HoopsHabit, with work featured on Bleacher Report and Yardbarker. In addition to his work here, he is a reporter for both NBA Analysis Network and NFL Analysis Network, as well as a writer and editor for Packers Coverage. You can follow him on X, formerly Twitter, @teapester725, or reach him via email at teapester725@gmail.com.

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