It’s the dog days of the 2026-27 season, and the NHL is steadily approaching the brief holiday break toward the end of December. The Rangers, who came in with genuine hopes of returning to the playoffs, are in no better position than they were just a short year ago.
A third consecutive season of noncompetitive play and failing to make the postseason would be the Blueshirts’ worst-case scenario.
It wouldn’t just mark the organization’s first stretch of three consecutive playoff-less seasons in 23 years, dating back to before the 2004-05 lockout, but it would also confirm the team’s state of purgatory.
All the draft capital recently sacrificed for the team’s retooling initiative would look wasted.
