NY Rangers Feel Disappointed Despite Finale Win Over Lightning

The New York Rangers came away with a feeling of disappointment despite ending the year on a high note against the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Apr 15, 2026; Tampa, Florida, USA; New York Rangers left wing Tye Kartye (24) reacts after an assist on a goal against the Tampa Bay Lightning in the second period at Benchmark International Arena. / Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

The 2025-26 NHL season has officially come to an end for the New York Rangers, who played their regular-season finale on the road against the Tampa Bay Lightning.

While their foes are off to the NHL postseason, the Rangers will begin their offseason work. There is a lot to be done if New York wants to get back into the playoff picture in the Eastern Conference, finishing last with only 77 points.

However, they did end the campaign on a high note. With Dylan Garand in the net for the finale, New York came away with a 4-2 victory, defeating Brandon Halverson, who was the starting goaltender for the Lightning, with Andrei Vasilevskiy getting the night off in preparation for the postseason.

While picking up a win is always nice, head coach Mike Sullivan couldn’t help but feel disappointed with how the entire season unfolded for his team.

Mike Sullivan offers words after Rangers win finale

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. / Danny Wild-Imagn Images

"(My emotions) are mixed right now," Sullivan said, via Corey Long of NHL.com. "Obviously, we're not in the position that we had hoped to be or where we want to be. From that standpoint, we're all disappointed and we all have to take ownership for it, myself included."

Taking accountability is always nice to see from the head coach. While missing the playoffs is a bummer, he should be pleased with the turnaround that his squad showed over the final few weeks of the season.

Young players emerged as regular contributors, helping the team win six out of their last 10 games, playing .500 hockey over the last quarter-plus of the season. While that may not seem like much to some people, it is a pretty strong finish for a team that ended up being 34-39-9 on the year.

Against Tampa Bay, the youngster who took center stage was Tye Kartye. Claimed off waivers from the Seattle Kraken on Feb. 27, he looks to have found a home with the Rangers.

First career multi-goal game for Karts 👊 pic.twitter.com/ngkkcSqaNh

— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) April 16, 2026

He was the latest player to record a multi-goal game, lighting the lamp twice against the Lightning. At 4:02 into the first period, he scored his first goal off assists from Mika Zibanejad and Vladislav Gavrikov.

His second goal, at 1:29 into the second period, was assisted by J.T. Miller and Conor Sheary. Kartye would have a hand in the team’s third goal of the game as well, recording an assist along with Will Cuylle on Gabe Perreault’s 12th goal of the season.

Seeing so many young players contributing, even in a game that didn’t mean much in the long run, has to make New York decision-makers happy.