New York Rangers: 5 burning questions for 2018-19 season

NEW YORK, NY - MAY 09: Henrik Lundqvist #30 and the New York Rangers look on after being defeated 4-2 against the Ottawa Senators in Game Six of the Eastern Conference Second Round during the 2017 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at Madison Square Garden on May 9, 2017 in New York City. (Photo by Jared Silber/NHLI via Getty Images) /

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The New York Rangers will face more questions than answers going into the season as they made a lot of changes this past offseason.

The New York Rangers missed the playoffs this past season for the first time since 2010 as they had a seven-year period where they were in the playoffs each year. It resulted in the firing of head coach Alain Vigneault and also some key players being traded. Ryan McDonagh and J.T. Miller were shipped to Tampa just before the trade deadline and they also moved on from Rick Nash and Michael Grabner as well during the deadline.

No one knows what to expect from the Rangers this season so let’s take a look at some questions surrounding the team going into this upcoming season.

5. How will David Quinn adjust to coaching in the NHL?

It’s always a big question when a rookie coach steps into the spotlight. This will be Quinn’s first ever NHL head coaching job and it comes where his team will play in the world’s most famous arena for half the season. Before taking this job, he was the head coach at Boston University for five years and he was also an assistant coach with the Colorado Avalanche in 2012-2013 before going to Boston. He already knows forward Kevin Hayes very well since he recruited Hayes when he was trying to pick a school to play hockey and they’ve been friends ever since.

Perhaps the biggest plus for Quinn going into his rookie season is that there are no expectations this season for New York. They’re not a Stanley Cup contender going into this season as they’re starting their rebuild. It’ll be a rebuild on the fly but it’ll be very interesting to see how quickly players trust him.

It seemed to work fine for Philadelphia when they hired a first-time NHL coach just a few years ago in Dave Hakstol. He’s guided them to the playoffs in two of his three seasons. Obviously, both teams are in different spots for these respective hires, but there could be major similarities on how quick the Rangers trust and buy into Quinn just like the Flyers with Hakstol.

There’s also the obvious that his first gig will be in one of the biggest markets in the country for this sport. Every move he makes or doesn’t make, he will hear it from the media and also the fans so that’s a big adjustment from going from college to the NHL.

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