Gallant hire pays off for Rangers
The Rangers pointed to Gerard Gallant’s success as a head coach when he was hired last June to take over a team that was struggling to develop an identity during a three-year rebuilding effort.
The veteran coach previously led Florida to the Atlantic Division title in 2016, Vegas to the Pacific Division title and the Stanley Cup Final in its inaugural season in 2018, and guided Canada from an 0-3 start to the gold medal at the world championships last year.
Gallant has come through with a steadying influence in his first season in New York, leading the Rangers to a second-place finish in the Metropolitan Division and their first playoff appearance in five years other than the qualifying round in 2020. New York faces the Pittsburgh Penguins starting Tuesday.
“I knew it was a talented team, I knew it was a young team,” Gallant said. “We just wanted to take a step. I didn’t know if we’re going to finish in first place or we’re going to finish battling for a playoff spot. Obviously things went real well for our team this year and we’re in a good spot right now. A long way to go hopefully, but keep grinding away.”
The Rangers finished with 52 wins, matching the 1993-94 Stanley Cup-winning team for the second-most in franchise history — just one behind the 2014-15 squad. That’s a remarkable turnaround from the 27-236 mark in the shortened season under former coach David Quinn a year ago.
“As a coach you never come in here and say ‘50 wins will mean a great season for us,’” Gallant said. “You just take it one game at a time and that’s how we do things, but it’s huge, it’s great to see . ... It’s been a real good year and a lot of fun.”