It feels weird to say this will be the final Chris Kreider report card on the site, but here we are. After 13 seasons on Broadway, Kreider was sent to Anaheim this offseason to make room for Vlad Gavrikov, with the Blueshirts receiving mid-level prospect Carey Terrance and a 3rd round pick. The trade came after a disappointing season and end to his Rangers career, one marred injuries, including a bout with vertigo and offseason surgery on his hand.
Kreider’s 2024-2025 season was statistically rough, but he still managed 22 goals in 68 games despite everything. The 26 goal pace over 82 games was a far cry from his last three seasons of 52, 36, and 39 goals. His meager 8 assists was less a product of him and more a product of an ineffective powerplay and struggles from many other players on the roster. Kreider was never a play maker, and assists mostly came from his other work on the ice.
For the sake of this year’s Chris Kreider report card, we have to keep looking at his stats and his minimal impact on the ice. But we also need context regarding his numerous injuries. There’s also context needed for his role in the locker room and how it responded to the offseason drama with Barclay Goodrow and Jacob Trouba, the trade memo, and other issues that clearly impacted their ability to perform on the ice. As an on-ice leader, Kreider unfortunately failed to lead in his final season.
So when grading our final Chris Kreider report card, it’s a decision about whether we want to blame Kreider for the hot mess that was the New York Rangers, or do we want to blame the full team. It was definitely a full team issue for sure, but we can’t discount the fact that Kreider did not put the team ahead of his own feelings. If he wasn’t the longest tenured Ranger and the de facto captain following the Trouba drama, we could overlook it. Unfortunately he was, so we can’t.
Kreider’s dismal stats and play driving can be explained away by an injury riddled season. I don’t think many will argue there. The issue, and the one that drags down the grade on our Chris Kreider report card, is how he “led” the team following all the offseason and early season drama.
2024-2025 Chris Kreider report card grade: D
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