New York Rangers fantasy projections for 2023-24

As part of NHL.com's 32 in 32 series, the fantasy hockey staff has projections for relevant players on the New York Rangers. Players are listed in order of fantasy rank for this season. 

Igor Shesterkin, G

NHL.com fantasy rank: 18

Reason for optimism: Shesterkin's 37 wins were tied for third in the NHL last season, and he had a 2.48 goals-against average and .916 save percentage. His 73 wins are tied with Andrei Vasilevskiy of the Tampa Bay Lightning for the most in the NHL since 2021-22 and his .924 save percentage ranks second among 67 goalies who's played at least 50 games since his NHL debut Jan. 7, 2020. Shesterkin could make at least 60 starts this season, giving him a high fantasy floor.

NHL.com wins projection: 39

Adam Fox, D

NHL.com fantasy rank: 21

Reason for optimism: Fox scored an NHL career-high 12 goals and had 72 points last season, his second season with at least 70 points, and he's the only NHL defenseman with at least 70 in each of the past two. He benefits from a spot on the top power-play unit; the Rangers ranked seventh in power-play percentage (24.1 percent).

NHL.com point projection: 81

Mika Zibanejad, C

NHL.com fantasy rank: 26

Reason for optimism: Zibanejad had an NHL career high 91 points (39 goals, 52 assists) last season while playing all 82 games. He scored an NHL career-best 20 goals on the power play, which tied with Brayden Point of the Lightning and Tage Thompson of the Buffalo Sabres for third-most in the NHL. Zibanejad finished with a 15.5 percent shooting percentage, a little higher than his 13.4 percent career rate in NHL, thus increasing his scoring ceiling this season. He has become an elite center the past four seasons with 133 total goals since the start of 2019-20 (fifth at the position in span).

NHL.com point projection: 84

Artemi Panarin, LW

NHL.com fantasy rank: 28

Reason for optimism: Panarin had a team-high 92 points (29 goals, 63 assists) last season, reaching the 90-point mark for the third time in four seasons as a member of the Rangers. He averaged 1.38 points per game over 42 games in the 56-game 2020-21 season, a 113-point pace over 82 games. Panarin has been one of the steadiest scoring wings in the NHL since joining the Rangers in 2019-20, giving him a high fantasy floor. He trails only Connor McDavid (478), Leon Draisaitl (432) and Nathan MacKinnon (357) for the most points in the NHL in that span.

NHL.com point projection: 94

Chris Kreider, LW/RW

NHL.com fantasy rank: 72

Reason for optimism: Kreider scored 36 goals last season despite scoring just eight on the power play after an NHL-high and Rangers single-season 26 in 2021-22). He has formed great chemistry with Zibanejad on the top line and is a safe bet to score at least 30 goals with an even higher ceiling if he benefits from production on the man-advantage.

NHL.com point projection: 65

Other NYR players to consider in fantasy: Vincent Trocheck, C; Blake Wheeler, LW/RW; K'Andre Miller, D; Filip Chytil, C; Alexis Lafrenière, LW

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