NY Rangers Rightfully Receive Horrible Grade for Regular Season Performance

What grade did the New York Rangers receive for their regular season efforts?

Apr 4, 2026; New York, New York, USA; New York Rangers head coach Mike Sullivan speaks to reporters after a 4-1 win against the Detroit Red Wings at Madison Square Garden. / Danny Wild-Imagn Images

As the Stanley Cup Playoffs get going, the New York Rangers will be watching on the sidelines for the second straight year. Unfortunately, their season did not go according to plan. 

With a terrible start to the campaign at home, the Rangers likely realized early that they were not going to be a contender like they had envisioned this season. Injuries to both Adam Fox and Igor Shesterkin played a part in their struggles as well, with both of them being two of the top players on the team. 

Furthermore, with it becoming clear that they weren’t going to be a contender, the team elected to trade Artemi Panarin, which was a wise move with the franchise struggling. While the team starts to plan for the future, there is no hiding from what was a terrible year for them this season. 

Adam Gretz of Bleacher Report recently handed out grades for all of the teams in the NHL after the regular season. For the Rangers, to no surprise, they received a poor grade of an ‘F’ for their efforts this year. 

New York Rightfully Receives Poor Grade

New York Rangers center Mika Zibanejad / Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

With the worst record in the Eastern Conference, receiving the grade of an ‘F’ is certainly fair. What really makes it fair is that this was a team that was expected to be a contender this season. 

Even though things went poorly quickly, they made some notable moves to help improve the team with the acquisition of J.T. Miller and the signing of Vladislav Gavrikov. Furthermore, landing a great coach in Mike Sullivan also isn’t a move for a team that is expecting to be poor. 

Now, this summer is going to be a pivotal one for the team. With some solid veterans still on the roster and some emerging young talent, there is reason to believe that they will be better next season based on how they performed toward the end of the season. 

However, while they might have played better down the stretch, they do need some help. They will have a couple of first-round draft picks, one of which will be in the Top 5. Furthermore, they also have cap space and will be able to pursue some talent in free agency. Also, the trade market will undoubtedly be a place they explore to add talent as well. 

Overall, while the grade of an ‘F’ is tough to see, it is fair. Now, the team will be seeking to turn things around and get back on track.