J.T. Miller delivered a straightforward statement on his performance so far in the 2025-26 NHL season. Following the New York Rangers’ loss to the Vegas Golden Knights upon Mike Sullivan’s return from personal leave, the captain sent a clear message to the locker room.
Not good enough. Those three words may be the perfect summary for the Rangers’ production in the NHL campaign. During their visit to Las Vegas, the Broadway Blueshirts watched their six-game win streak on the road come to an end.
Sullivan’s New York entered the game with the league-best away record (9-1-1). However, the Golden Knights proved that T-Mobile Arena in Sin City can be an unbreachable fortress when they are at their best. Miller and the Rangers learned their lesson, as the captain has now voiced a harsh critique of his game.
“At some point you look in the mirror,” Miller admitted, via The New York Post. “Speaking on behalf of myself, I certainly expect a hell of a lot more production than what I have. I’ve never really gauged my game on points, and I said that a lot. Typically, when I bring my game, the points come. That being said, this year, it seems like nothing’s really going in the net.“
Mike Sullivan on October 28, 2025 in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
Rangers can still change how they look
21 games into the NHL season, the Rangers know the clock is ticking. What was once seen as a slump is now proving to be a picture of how New York really looks during Sullivan’s first year in The Big Apple.
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“We’ve got a big enough sample size now that 25% of the season is gone, and we’re in a lot of one-goal games,” Miller added. “If I can raise my personal standard and lead the team a little bit better production wise, I think our outcome in these games are going to change. So it’s making me frustrated.”
New York can’t buy a goal
The Rangers’ concerns don’t just end at their struggles when playing on home ice. Of course, being 1-7-1 at Madison Square Garden is reason enough to panic for fans in The Big Apple, but it’s far from the whole story. Equally disturbing is the fact that New York is among the bottom-three teams in scoring.
Through 21 outings, the Rangers average just 2.48 goals per outing. Only the Calgary Flames and Nashville Predators register worse numbers in that statistic. However, that’s of no relief for Sullivan, Miller, and company. Contrary to the organizations in Stampede City and Music City, the team in New York did come into the campaign with playoff hopes. The Flames and Preds, on the other hand, knew they’d be competing for a lottery pick next spring.
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