Ever since they returned from the Olympic break, the Rangers have been playing better hockey. Unlike most of what’s been a disappointing centennial anniversary season, they look like they’re having fun.

The mood has been a lot lighter after learning that Vincent Trocheck didn’t move at last Friday’s NHL trade deadline. Perhaps keeping the likable veteran around has allowed the players to loosen up. Unlike mid January, when they learned of Rangers team president and general manager Chris Drury’s plan to ‘retool’ the roster, things have improved.

They’re playing stress-free hockey, which has led to more wins. In shutting out the Flames 4-0 on Tuesday, they’re 4-1-2 over the last seven games. Aside from a 3-2 overtime defeat to the Flyers on Feb. 26, in which head coach Mike Sullivan thought they looked disjointed, the effort has been much better since.

Following a come from behind win over the Penguins, they rallied from a four-goal third period deficit before falling in overtime to the Blue Jackets. They showed more heart and resiliency in each to earn cheers at MSG.

In a 6-3 loss to the Devils on Mar. 7, the score wasn’t a reflection on how they played. Despite getting doubled up in the first meeting against their close Hudson rivals, the Rangers held a lead and came back to tie the score on a Will Cuylle goal late in the second period. It wasn’t until a big Jacob Markstrom save which denied Gabe Perreault’s bid that the Devils took advantage of special teams with Nico Hischer notching their third goal on the power play before Jack Hughes put it away.

Despite the loss, the Rangers have responded well by blowing out the Flyers 6-2 on Monday. They then followed it up by winning for the first time on the second game of a back-to-back in convincing fashion over Calgary.

Similar to their success against the Flyers, the Rangers got another big game out of their younger players. Alexis Lafreniere continued his revival by recording the second hat trick of his career. After deflecting home a Mika Zibanejad shot on a power play in the first period, he put away a Gabe Perreault feed for his second of the contest. A splendid passing play was started by Zibanejad from behind the net.

Having already notched his 800th career NHL point, Zibanejad continues to flourish with Lafreniere and Perreault. A new top line that’s provided fans with excitement.

The biggest reason why the cohesive trio works is due to how unselfish all three forwards are. There’s no hesitation at moving the puck or deferring to Zibanejad, who’s the opposite of former Ranger Artemi Panarin. While he was a huge success on Broadway, Panarin often needed the puck to operate up top to create offense.

The Rangers are playing a diffrent style since Panarin departed. Instead, it’s other players hanging onto the puck and having the freedom to do more, with Zibanejad recently admitting that he trusts Perreault.

Lafreniere has always been a skilled offensive player, but now he’s utilizing his talent to put opponents on the defensive. A strong forward with good instincts, the hard work is starting to pay off.

Late in the third period, he finished off his hat trick on a 2-on-1 thanks to Perreault making the extra pass for the exclamation point on the Rangers’ third straight home win.

Laba and Kartye Contributing to Rangers’ Recent Success

While Lafreniere, Zibanejad, and Perreault have done the heavy lifting, other fresh faces are contributing to the Rangers’ recent success.

That includes Noah Laba and Tye Kartye. Since the Rangers claimed Kartye on waivers, the former Kraken forward has found a place on the third line with Laba and Conor Sheary.

In particular, it’s been the strong defensive work from Kartye that has helped lead to offense. A player who always comes back hard on the backcheck, the 24-year-old is also effective on the forecheck. That gritty effort has been rewarded so far with Kartye having a goal and three assists in his first six games as a Blueshirt.

A day after notching his first goal as a Ranger on a nice deflection of a Vladislav Gavrikov shot, Kartye set up Sheary for an easy goal in front against the Flames. That gave him four points over the last three games. He also picked up a secondary helper on a Laba tip-in of a Matthew Robertson shot versus the Flyers.

Although he didn’t record a point in the win over Calgary, Laba used his speed and strength to create the Sheary goal that made it 2-0 in the second period. Will Borgen sent a long pass down, allowing Laba to negate an icing and win a battle to free it up for Kartye, who found Sheary on the doorstep. That kind of effort has been there from the 22-year-old rookie this season.

A hard-working player capable of being trusted in all three zones, the 2022 fourth round pick is more than the seven goals and 12 assists for 19 points he has. Laba is now being used with Kartye by Sullivan on the Rangers’ number one penalty killing unit. It’s a responsibility they’ve earned on a team that boasts the reliable Zibanejad, Trocheck, and Cuylle.

There’s a lot to like about the direction the Rangers are heading in. They’re finally playing faster and with more purpose. Perhaps there is some light at the end of the tunnel.