A Tale of Two Systems For The Blueshirts

Last season, the New York Rangers were able to put the puck in the net with regularity, while they struggled to keep the puck out of their net.

At the end of the year, the team was 12th in the league in goals scored and 17th in the league in goals-against. Because they struggled defensively, the Rangers did not make the Stanley Cup playoffs for the first time since the 2021 COVID-shortened season.

When it comes to this season, it has been the reverse for the Blueshirts. As of this writing (Wednesday, November 19), the team is 28th in the league in goals scored and sixth in the league in goals-against, which means that Rangers' head coach Mike Sullivan needs to figure out how to get his team's offense going.

Simply put, the team's offense has been abysmal this season. For starters, they are having a lot of trouble scoring goals on home ice this season, as they have been shutout five times at Madison Square Garden.

Yes, you read that right. They were shutout the following times at home so far this season:

- October 7 vs. the Pittsburgh Penguins: 3-0
- October 12 vs. the Washington Capitals: 1-0
- October 14 vs. the Edmonton Oilers: 2-0
- November 4 vs. the Carolina Hurricanes: 3-0
- November 8 vs. the New York Islanders: 5-0

It took four games for the Rangers to score on home ice, and they have scored just 13 goals in nine games at MSG this season. This is obviously terrible and something needs to change in a hurry as the Rangers have usually been a tough team to beat at home.

Another reason why the Rangers are struggling offensively is because they are not shooting the puck enough. The team is currently 19th in the league in shots per game as they are averaging around 27 shots a game.

More often than not, this team is looking for the perfect play instead of putting the puck towards the net or doing something simple. At the moment, this team does not have the necessary skill to look for the perfect play, so they need to start throwing the puck at the net more.

It also hurts that the team is not getting goals from their supposed big-time players. No one on the Rangers has more than seven goals this season, which means players like Mika Zibanejad (seven), Artemi Panarin (five), J.T. Miller (four), Alexis Lafreniere (four), and Vincent Trocheck (three) need to start putting the puck in the net.

It is the team's offense that currently has them on the outside looking in when it comes to a playoff spot. The team is currently sixth in the Metropolitan Division, 11th in the Eastern Conference, and 21st in the NHL, which means that the Rangers are nowhere close to being a playoff hockey club.

Keeping the puck out of the net has been a different story for the Rangers this season. For starters, it does not hurt that they have been getting excellent goaltending from both Igor Shesterkin and Jonathan Quick.

Shesterkin, 29, is currently 7-7-0-2 with a 2.43 goals-against average, a .911 save percentage, and one shutout. Meanwhile, the 39-year-old Quick is 3-2 with a 1.42 goals-against average, a .951 save percentage, and one shutout.

The team has also been more responsible in their own end so far this season. They do a good job of blocking shots, clearing out rebounds, and letting their goaltenders see the puck.

It should also be said that because they have not been aggressive on offense, they are not giving up as many odd-man chances as they did last season. The forwards do a good job of backchecking and they make sure that they are engaged in their own end.

While the Rangers need to stick to the way they are playing defensively, they need to amp up their offense in a big way if they want to be in the thick of things in their division and conference. If they are not able to do that, it will be another season in which they are not playing hockey at the most important time of the season.