Opinion: Rangers’ Lafreniere Must Build on Last Season’s Success

Many expectations come with being a number one overall pick in the NHL.

The particular player is expected to come out and produce immediately and be the cornerstone of his franchise for years to come. For an 18-year-old, that is a lot to handle.

This was the case for New York Rangers’ forward Alexis Lafreniere. Lafreniere, 22, was the number one overall pick in the 2020 NHL Entry Draft after dominating the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL).

Through his first three seasons, Lafreniere has put up decent numbers, as he had 91 points on 47 goals and 44 assists. With that said, both management and the team’s fans were expecting a lot more, considering that he was a number one overall pick.

Things changed in a big way for Lafreniere last season as he showed the Rangers and the rest of the league that he can be a force to be reckoned with. Playing on a line with Vincent Trocheck and Artemi Panarin, Lafreniere finished the regular season with 57 points on 28 goals and 29 assists and then added another 14 points on eight goals and six assists in the Stanley Cup playoffs.

For the Rangers and Lafreniere, that had to have been a monkey off of their respective backs. Their top pick finally showed signs that he could be an impact player for the franchise and that, if put in the right role, he could produce at a high level.

There are a few reasons why Lafreniere needs to show that last season was not a fluke. For starters, he needs to prove that he can be consistent.

The best players in the league are the ones who produce year in and year out. NHL managers, fans, and analysts alike can pencil in high point totals for these kinds of players every single season without hesitation because they have shown to be reliable every season.

Lafreniere needs to go out and try to be even better than he was last season. Hitting 30 goals and putting up between 65-75 points should be more than a reasonable total for Lafreniere to hit come the end of the regular season.

Secondly, Lafreniere’s contract expires at the end of the season. As such, he is going to want to put up big numbers so he can get himself a hefty raise.

Lafreniere can earn himself a high-end contract after this upcoming season by showing that last season was not a flash in the pan and that he is only going to get better as he is still a very young player. He is not even close to being in his prime so he needs to show that there is still a lot of upside to be had when it comes to his overall game.

Luckily, it appears that Rangers general manager Chris Drury feels very strongly about Lafreniere. In his meeting with the media on Tuesday morning, September 17, Drury told Rangers’ USA TODAY beat writer Vince Mercogliano that he likes what Lafreniere has shown so far.

“In our eyes, he continues to get better and better,” Drury said about Lafrenière. “I’m not going to get into negotiations, but he certainly is an exciting young piece for us and one that we hope, just like Igor, is here for a long time.”

Lastly, Lafreniere needs to have a big season for himself. He needs to continue to gain confidence in his game because as everyone saw last season, he played at an extremely high level because he was sure of his game and what he could do with it.

Just like the Rangers will be in win-now mode all season, Lafreniere will be in continue-to-get-better-mode as he looks to continue to establish himself as a young star in the NHL.