NY Rangers Could Use More From This Key Duo Going Forward

The New York Rangers could use a little bit more from this key duo.

Apr 5, 2026; New York, New York, USA; New York Rangers head coach Mike Sullivan speaks to reporters after an 8-1 win against the Washington Capitals at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Danny Wild-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The New York Rangers are now nine games through the season, and there have been a lot of positives so far. However, with some injuries piling up, there is a reason to be concerned as well. 

Following the season-ending injury to Igor Shesterkin, the Rangers knew that their season was going to be impacted. Shesterkin is one of the best goalies in the league, and New York is going to be asking a lot of Dylan Garand to fill in for him now, with Joonas Korpisalo hurt as well. 

Due to the injury and Garand being a young goalie, others are going to have to step up for the Rangers. So far, they are 2-1 since Shesterkin went down. However, they did just recently suffer a bad blowout loss to the New Jersey Devils. While that was just one game, it was a bad performance. 

When looking at some of the areas that the Rangers might look to try and get some improvements from, the second pair on the blueline could be one of them. Some of the underlying metrics for their duo have room for improvement. 

Rangers Could Use More From Second Pair

Oct 2, 2026; Detroit, Michigan, USA; New York Rangers defenseman Sean Durzi (5) skates with the puck in the second period against the Detroit Red Wings at Little Caesars Arena. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

While things are going well overall for the Rangers, there will always be areas for the team to improve. One spot that the team put a lot of effort into this offseason to make better was the second pair on the blueline. 

The defense overall struggled for New York last year, and improving in this area was key. The Rangers knew this and went out to get Sean Durzi and Marcus Pettersson in two separate trades. 

According to HockeyStats.com, this duo has played just over 129 minutes together at even strength, which is actually the most on the team amongst the defensive pairs for the Rangers. However, when looking at how they have done when on the ice at even strength, their expected goal for percentage is 40.6%. 

Ideally, New York would want to see that number a bit higher, and actual production has them at two goals for and three allowed when on the ice. While expected stats are not the be-all-end-all, it is an indication of how they are playing. 

By comparison, Adam Fox and Vladislav Gavrikov have an xGF% of 55.2% at five-on-five. 

While it would be good to see the expected stats look a bit better, so far Durzi has an actual +/- of 0, and Pettersson has a +/- of 3. What actually occurs on the ice is what really matters, but the Rangers will hope to see this duo improve a bit going forward.