The season ended so abruptly. One day we are tracking the playoff picture and where the New York Rangers stand after every night clicked off the NHL schedule, then in a flash it all became so meaningless. The joy of watching Artemi Panarin, the wonder of watching Mika Zibanejad morph into one of the NHLs most dominant centers, all suddenly halted. Suddenly.
The playoff chase was exactly what this Rangers team needed. The youngest team in the league competing in meaningful games during the last few weeks of the season. These weeks were going to bring valuable NHL experience, these weeks were going to make next season as highly anticipated as any a Rangers fan can remember.