NY Rangers' Forward Might Have Turned a Corner With Great Second Half

Which young player for the New York Rangers had a great second half of the year?

Apr 4, 2026; New York, New York, USA; New York Rangers center Mika Zibanejad (93) talks to left wing Alexis Lafreniere (13) and defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov (44) during the second period against the Detroit Red Wings at Madison Square Garden. / Danny Wild-Imagn Images

The 2025-26 campaign has come and gone for the New York Rangers, and it was unfortunately one of the worst in the history of the franchise. 

Despite having some expectations coming into the year, the Rangers got off to a slow start, and things really spiraled out of control. New York got off to a historically bad start at home, and things really never got going. 

The Rangers elected to move some key pieces recently, and they are very much in a transitional stage right now. Chris Drury has been adamant that this is a retool rather than a full rebuild. 

While the Rangers might be retooling, they do appear to be in a strong position to flip things around quickly. New York has cap space and two first-round picks, one of which will be in the Top 5. Furthermore, down the stretch, they started to play better, especially on the offensive end. 

With some of the young players being in expanded roles and getting a chance, the Rangers started to look like a much better team. One of the main reasons for that was the performance of their former first overall pick, Alexis Lafreniere. Even though he has been a highly talked-about player as a former top pick, he performed really well after the Olympic break. 

Lafreniere Turning a Corner?

New York Rangers left wing Alexis Lafreniere / Danny Wild-Imagn Images

As a former first overall pick, expectations for the young forward have always been through the roof. While he hasn’t met many of those expectations, he has had some good moments.

At just 24 years old, there is still reason to believe that he can improve, and his play after the Olympic break might be a great indication of that. During that span, he was able to record 25 points in 25 games, proving that he can be the scorer that the team expected him to be. 

He was able to total 12 goals and 13 assists in 25 games, marking one of the best stretches of his career. Being a point-per-game player in the NHL is not an easy thing to do, and doing so over a 25-game span is impressive. 

Overall, Lafreniere tied a career-high with 57 points on 24 goals and 33 assists. He was able to set a new career-high in assists, and the goals were the second-most of his career. Even though he has been labeled as a disappointment based on where he was drafted, he put together a strong stretch in 2026, and there still might be room for improvement.