The New York Rangers do not have the best track record when it comes to developing draft picks in recent years. One player who was developed properly is Chris Kreider. Since being drafted 19th overall in the 2009 NHL Draft, he has become a key figure in the Rangers’ lineup. While he has had many up and down seasons, his more recent seasons have shown the kind of player he has grown into and this has led him to hold many Rangers regular season and playoff records. This is why Kreider’s No. 20 will be retired when his career is over.
Goal Scoring & Point Records
Before the 2021-22 season, Kreider had never scored more than 28 goals and 53 points. Then suddenly, he exploded for 52 goals and 77 points during that season and followed up with a 36-goal season in 2022-23 and so far this season, he has 14 goals in 24 games. This uptick in scoring has boosted Kreider’s stats, and he is now one of the top scorers in Rangers history. As of this writing, he is one point away from 500 in his career, which would put him seven behind Adam Graves for the tenth most points scored as a Ranger. His 273 goals are also seven behind Graves for the third most in Rangers history. With such a rocky start to his career, it is amazing to see how far Kreider has come and how close he is to making history with the Rangers.
Kreider has also been racking up goals on the power play. He holds the franchise record for most power-play goals in a season with 26, which broke Jaromir Jagr’s record of 24. He also is only behind Jagr in goals scored in a season, with Jagr having 54 and Kreider having 52. He is three goals away from 100 power-play goals in his career, which would tie him with Graves for fourth all-time and would leave him only 16 goals away from first all-time. At the pace he is scoring, he could reach these milestones over the next two seasons.
Playoff Performer
While he is a great regular-season performer, Kreider really steps up his game during the playoffs. He has been a consistent playoff performer throughout his career and has only missed the playoffs in three of his 12 seasons so far. He has played 107 playoff games, which is tied for first all-time with Marc Staal. He has 36 playoff goals, which is the most in franchise history and ten of those goals have been game-winners, which is also the most in franchise history. Holding these records shows how clutch Kreider is when the games mean more, but he holds one more playoff record which is even more impressive.
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Of the 107 games played in the post-season, 29 of those have been elimination games. In those games, Kreider becomes an even better player. He has scored 16 goals in elimination games, which is tied with Mark Messier for the most in NHL history. He truly is one of the most clutch players of all time. When his season is on the line, he steps his game up to another level. In those games, the Rangers have an overall record of 20-9-0. His ability to score key goals has helped them win many of these games and his playoff performances show why he will be remembered as a Rangers legend.
Plenty Of Time Left In His Career
With all of these records he holds so far, Kreider still has plenty of time left in his career to hold even more. He is currently 32 years old and has three more years left on his deal after this season. He will likely still be playing at age 35 and while many were skeptical of him when he signed his current deal the day of the trade deadline in 2020, it has become a steal for the Rangers because he has turned into a key goal scorer and a key leader for the Rangers going forward.
If he can keep playing at this pace for a few more seasons, he will hold even more Rangers franchise records and maybe even more playoff records for both the team and the league. If that is the case, there will be no argument that his number should be retired by the Rangers. Kreider is one of the best players drafted by the Rangers who has been on the team his whole career. If he ends up staying a Ranger for the rest of his career, his No. 20 will be hanging in the rafters at Madison Square Garden for years to come after he retires.
