Zac Jones eyes uncertain Rangers future, looks to improve ‘whether I’m here or somewhere else’

New York Rangers general manager Chris Drury has a slew of decisions to make when putting together a roster for the 2025-26 season and making sure the Blueshirts return to the Stanley Cup Playoffs after this miserable season.

One will be deciding the fate of Zac Jones, who is due for a new contract, but may not want one in New York after once again struggling to be a lineup regular with the Rangers. The 24-year-old defenseman has played all or parts of five seasons with the Rangers, and this season appeared in a career-high 46 games, well short of the total he sought entering the 2024-25 campaign.

Jones is a restricted free agent with arbitration rights this offseason. He could re-sign with the Rangers, go to arbitration (never a fun process) and remain with the team, or be traded. At break-up day last week, Jones claimed not to be concerned about what comes next or where he will play next season.

“Whatever happens this summer with contracts, whether I’m here or somewhere else, I’m going to give my best,” Jones said. “I love to be here, I love the New York Rangers organization, and we’ll see what happens this summer. I’m not focused on a role or anything like that. I’m just focusing on myself this summer and working on things I think I need to improve on.”

Perhaps a new coach will give Jones the playing time he feels that he deserves. The Rangers are in the process of looking for Peter Laviolette’s successor now. But that doesn’t guarantee anything for Jones, who’s seen plenty of coaches come and go throughout his Rangers tenure.

“It’s a new opportunity,” he explained. “I’ve been here now for [five] years and this would be our fourth head coach, so I can’t say I haven’t had the opportunity to prove new coaches right or wrong. Whether it’s here or somewhere else, just getting back to my game.”

Clearly, Jones is open to the idea of playing elsewhere when the puck drops on the 2025-26 season. The bottom line is that he just wants to play, no matter where that may be.

Zac Jones admits he ‘lost the offensive game a little bit’ with Rangers this season

Jones began the season on the third defense pair, then lost playing time to rookie Victor Mancini. Jones reestablished himself in the top six only to be supplanted by a group of incoming defensemen like Urho Vaakanainen, Calvin de Haan and Carson Soucy following a flurry of trades.

When Adam Fox went down with an injury in late February, Zones stepped back into the lineup and largely played well. Jones finished the season with an NHL career-high 11 points, that included a career-best 10 assists.

“I thought there were some good parts of the year,” Jones stated. “When I had some consistent time, I thought I played well. I thought my defensive game was a lot better this year as opposed to years prior. I lost the offensive game a little bit, but that’s something that this summer I’m really going to try and focus on and get back to.”

Per Natural Stat Trick, Jones was on ice for 157 high-danger scoring chances against and just 118 for, and the Rangers expected goals 5v5 was 47.79 percent when he was on the ice.

However, consistent playing time was the big issue for Jones, who made his frustration known in an outburst to the media during an extended stretch out of the lineup this season. It was a major struggle for Jones, who has stayed mostly optimistic throughout his time in the organization, but told reporters in January, “I just feel like I’m rotting away a little bit.”

That’s something Drury will have to think about this offseason when deciding what to do with Jones, who is plenty self-aware that his game does need some work. As an offensive defenseman, he hasn’t really produced much offense when given the chance. That’ll have to change, especially if he wants the playing time he feels he deserves.

“Bounces, sometimes maybe overcomplicating it a little bit, not making the simple plays,” Jones said about his lack of production. “A big thing for me is, I’m an offensive defenseman. I’ve got to put up points in this league to stay in this league. Me putting up 11 points this year isn’t good enough, personally.”

Let’s see if he gets the chance to improve with the Rangers or in another city next season.