It wouldn’t be a Broadway Breakdown piece without a pop culture tie in. When I tasked myself with writing the obituary for the disaster that was the 2024-2025 New York Rangers, I racked my brain for a parallel to draw. No this could not be simply tied to The Bee Gees with a witty musical reference. There wasn’t even a movie or tv show that felt appropriate. I wrestled with myself trying to find a character whose apathy matched that of 20 pro athletes who threw the towel. Fortunately my love of comic books led me to the right place, typified by one quote in particular.

I won’t bore you all with a long winded backstory to Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons 1986 graphic novel. In short it’s a deeper meditation on super heroes and their place in the world and popular culture, and how if they inhabited the real world they would be abusive with power, a dangerous tool, and grow apathetic. Basically it’s the Avengers if they’re misguided jerks. Doctor Manhattan, the big blue bald man you see above, is the most powerful being in the known universe…who decides he frankly can’t be bothered with using his ability for the good of humanity anymore. A lot like this years version of the New York Rangers (stay with me here).

As the team was eliminated Saturday in Raleigh, I along with many other fans, have fully come to resent this group as a whole. Simply because so very few of them even bothered to try this season. It’s truly remarkable that a year ago this group was driving towards winning the Presidents Trophy, with playoff dreams on the minds of the players and fans alike. To have fallen to the point of missing the playoffs entirely after just 365 days later is almost incomprehensible.

Perhaps even more baffling than the fall off is the players at the center of it. Veteran leaders, pillars of this last decade plus that has mostly featured success, have become the poster children for this failure. Mika Zibanejad is a detached shell of his formerly explosive and exciting self. Adam Fox looks like he needs a mental and physical break. But most disappointing of all, Chris Kreider, a true blue hero for 13 seasons on Broadway, threw the towel in and destroyed his legacy along the way.

They’re not alone, as many failed to cover themselves in glory this year, like K’Andre Miller who never seems to progress and Alexis Lafreniere who conveniently gave up on competing after getting his big deal. I could keep naming names, but we’d be here all day. It’s gotten so bad that it seems there will be an airing of grievances once the season ends, with Calvin de Haan playing the part of Frank Costanza.

This self created tire fire is only just beginning and it’s going to claim many more victims. The lack of care has already seen several players depart, Peter Laviolette is likely next, and maybe GM Chris Drury probably isn’t far behind. It’s deeply concerning that this could even happen, but the bigger question is how do they avoid it happening again.

All of their fates are in James Dolan’s hands, which isn’t where I’d want to be right now (or ever). The culture needs to be completely re-made, as it is responsible for just about everything that took place this year. The lack of accountability from leadership and the unwillingness to do the little things to win, like chip pucks out, complete a simple pass, or finish a check is the result. All of those flaws and more combine for the underwhelming performances we saw last playoff as well. The fundamentals build success against the good teams…which is why they at times failed to beat them when it matter most over the years.

Whoever takes over from here needs to have a steady hand to guide this thing back onto the tracks. Many people will get busy drawing parallels to the letdown that was the 92-93 season, and how the 93-94 championship team rose from its ashes. But right now that doesn’t feel even remotely appropriate. A quick fix feels exceedingly unlikely, and a play for long term stability must be made. If both can be done great, but the next truly great leader of this organization must be found. If there is any parallel to draw, it’s finding a new Neil Smith type of executive to replace Drury, the way Smith replaced the outgoing Phil Esposito 1989.

This horrible, frustrating, and downright depressing season has to lead to something better. Otherwise it will just be the beginning of a new dark age. 24-25 must be parlayed into a brighter better future, not a re-run of the late 90’s and early 00’s on Broadway. Ranger fans are arguably the most loyal in New York, and they should be repaid with a team they can enjoy watching (in more ways than one) at the bare minimum. It’s time to get work on re-discovering that team…and burying the rest of this one along with “The Comedian” (you’re welcome Watchmen fans).

We’ll be back with more Ranger coverage as the season draws to a close in the days ahead. On twitter you can find Mike @Mike_Sheerin, Tyler @TMon_19 and Sean @SeanMartinNFL. Subscribe to the site by hitting the follow button in the bottom right corner and entering your email address. Check out our Instagram feed @thebroadwaybreakdownsports for special gameday and promotional content. Our podcasts are available on Spotify. Visit the Rangers Ed Shop by clicking the link on our homepage. Check out our mailbag page to join the conversation here on the site and on our partners show, The Rangers Ed Podcast! We’ll be back with more soon!