For some reason, the Rangers top line always seems to generate some level of debate. For some, Mika Zibanejad isn’t a top line center, and there is a decent debate about powerplay production versus even strength production. Then there’s Chris Kreider, who no matter what he does, always seems to get relegated to the third line by a vocal subset of fans. Yet Kreider’s 36 goals last year was tops on the Rangers, just 8 of them coming on the powerplay. Seems like a top line forward to me.
Kreider’s 36 goals, plus his 52 last season, puts him far and away the top goal scorer on the team the last two seasons.