The business for Mika Zibanejad as the third line center of Rangers this season – The Hockey Writers New York Rangers Latest News, Analysis and more

The forward group of the New York Rangers will be different this season. JT Miller comes back for a full campaign, but Chris Kreider is gone, and for the first time in a while the role of Mika Zibanejad is not put in stone.

Questions about Zibanejad started last season. His even production has taken a clear step back in the past two years and his ability to consistently control the game has fallen together with his skates. While he remains an important part of the schedule, the Rangers ask him to do too much in a top position?

There has been speculation about moving Zibanejad to the right wing To keep it in the top six, but the better option would be to move it to center the third line. At this stage in his career, the 3C spot would play its strengths and balance the forward lines of the team.

Zibanejad’s role

Zibanejad’s five-on-five production has fallen noticeably in 2024–25, with only 13 goals and 37 even points about 82 games, Despite still time with top-six wing players and in the attacking zone.

His underlying figures told the same story. The shot percentage of Zibanejad fell, his zone congestions were less effective and he had difficulty generating consistently scoring opportunities of the hurry. He was overly dependent on the Power Play to stay productive, which masked his limited impact on five-five.

Zibanejad as the 3C

Instead of forcing Zibanejad in a top-six place that he can no longer handle, the Rangers must let him center the third line where his skills will still have real value. He is still strong on draw, can kill fines and does not have to lead the hardly to be effective. In a third line role, he can take on more favorable matchups and help stabilize the center of the line-up. What is even more important, the Rangers have the wing players to make that line work.

Related: how the 2024-25 season fell apart

Zibanejad, Brennan Othmann and Brett Berard would give the Rangers a balanced third rule, one that combines experience, speed and edge. Othmann brings a physical element and a mentality into the shooting. Berard plays with energy, tracks pucks well and adds pace to the transition. Both players have shown that they can push the game of the wing, but do not have to be on a score line to be effective.

Zibanejad would be the veteran anchor between them without asking him to ride like before. It is a cleaner fit than everything that the Rangers can produce in the top six, and it would give the lower six of the team a clear identity.

Give Gabe Perreault a chance

There is no longer a plea for building the top six around Zibanejad. He does not elevate linemates like him in the past. Shifting him to the right wing would not change that. It would simply move the problem to another part of the line -up.

The Rangers now have better options that no one has to force out of position. Miller can handle difficult matchups in the middle and still play. Will Cuylle adds a direct, north-south for check that fits the game of Miller. Gabe Perreault, if they get real minutes, offers the kind of offensive touch and balance that that rule could click.

It is not necessary to wedge Zibanejad on that unit. He does not fit their pace and he doesn’t have to wear their minutes. Let that group play quickly and grow in their identity without adapting to a slower, older line. If the Rangers want to transfer their top six to a more modern, sustainable group, Zibanejad is not part of it. That does not reduce what he entails, but it makes clear where he belongs.

Zibanejad’s path forward

There is still a role for Zibanejad in the grid of the Rangers, but it is not on the top line and it is not on the wing. The best version for everyone would be to center the third line with Othmann and Berard, where his experience can support younger wing players without delaying them. It is a role that now fits his game, not where it used to be.

The Rangers have new pieces to build. For the first time in years, the top six does not have to rely on Zibanejad to function. They just have to enable him and the team to succeed.