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New York Rangers · fan sentiment tracker

NYR Sentiment Tracker

Throughout the season I'm running quick check-in surveys on r/rangers to get a pulse on where we think the team is headed. The interesting part is watching those expectations move with hot and cold streaks, trades and injuries.

This page will grow with the season. Every check-in adds a point to the trend line below. Check-ins run from training camp through Game 80, so by the end you'll be able to see how expectations moved over the whole season.

Sentiment trend

As of today, where do you project the Rangers finishing this season?

After a 3-0 shutout loss in Boston, the share of fans who see the Rangers as a bottom dweller or worse jumped from 2% at training camp to 34%. Most people still picked bubble team, but nearly all the movement was downward: “Strong playoff team” fell from 12% to 4%. That pulled the sentiment index down almost 10 points, from 42 to 32.

Sentiment index

32/ 100

Fighting For Playoff Spot, leaning toward Bottom Dwelling Team

Change since last check-in

-9.6

vs. Training Camp Start

Season Opener responses

73

62% said Fighting For Playoff Spot

Over the season

Cup favoriteCup contenderStrong playoffBubbleBottom dwellerLotteryCampOpenerG10G20G30G42G50G60G70G8032

Season Opener results

62%Bubble
  • Stanley Cup Favorites0 · 0%
  • Stanley Cup Contenders0 · 0%
  • Strong Playoff Team3 · 4%
  • Fighting For Playoff Spot45 · 62%
  • Bottom Dwelling Team19 · 26%
  • Lottery Team Fighting For #1 Pick6 · 8%

How the index works: each answer gets a score from Lottery (0) to Cup favorite (100), in steps of 20, and the index is the average across everyone who responded. Full details in the methodology.

How the answers split

Every response, one bar per check-in

  • Stanley Cup Favorites
  • Stanley Cup Contenders
  • Strong Playoff Team
  • Fighting For Playoff Spot
  • Bottom Dwelling Team
  • Lottery Team Fighting For #1 Pick
Training Camp Start42 responses

Last 10: 0-0-0|Last 21: 0-0-0

12%
Bubble 86%
Season Opener73 responses

Last 10: 0-1-0|Last 21: 0-1-0

Bubble 62%
26%
Game 10Opens after Game 10

Season Opener survey ran Sep 30, 2026 to Oct 1, 2026.

Look up your answers

Entered a reddit name or code in the survey? Type it here to see every prediction you've made, and the Rangers' record at the time.

In their own words

32 of 73 people said why they picked their answer. Here's what came up most.

Where are the goals?

11 of 32 answers

The biggest worry by far. A shutout to open the season brought back memories of last year’s offense.

  • “We have 0 goals.”
    Bubble
  • “Worst top line in the league, serious lack of scoring talent”
    Lottery
  • “No offense. As usual. Porous defense.”
    Bottom dweller
  • “Offense will not average more than two goals a game vs championship contenders.”
    Lottery

It’s one game

7 of 32 answers

Most people who stayed at “bubble team” said one loss after a short preseason doesn’t change much.

  • “It’s one game. I don’t feel any differently than I did in preseason.”
    Bubble
  • “One game doesn’t decide the season. It was overall a fine game with a disastrous 3mins”
    Bubble
  • “I’m not going to freak out over game one after a shortened preseason with several new players. I think they will eventually get it together and get in rhythm with one another.”
    Bubble
  • “Flashes of talent with a lack of polish and cohesiveness. I think the team will improve over time, but I don’t think it will be enough to beat the heavy weight teams.”
    Bubble

Doubts down the middle

6 of 32 answers

Questions about the top two centers, an aging core and how the roster was built.

  • “JT ain’t a top 6 C anymore, offence still can’t even finish a breakfast, PP scheme is still brutal”
    Lottery
  • “Neither have driven play in a few seasons now… Mika is an injury away from this team completely collapsing.”
    Bottom dweller
  • “Team finished dead last in the east and is now 1 year older.”
    Bottom dweller
  • “It’s more likely at this stage that we’re selling off parts ahead of the trade deadline than actually looking like we might sneak in via the wildcard.”
    Lottery

Igor is the floor

6 of 32 answers

Shesterkin is the main reason the optimists stayed optimistic, and the pessimists worry about what happens without him.

  • “Terrible metro division + Igor”
    Strong playoff
  • “They also have one of the best goalies. That alone should get them into the playoffs.”
    Bubble
  • “Gotta get their chemistry going. Igor gives them a chance.”
    Bubble
  • “Igor can’t stand on his head every night and the team is cooked if a backup takes over.”
    Lottery

Same team as last year

5 of 32 answers

For some, the opener looked like a rerun of last season.

  • “Looked the same as last year. No passion.”
    Bottom dweller
  • “This is a slow team that has some individually skilled players that don’t play well together as a team.”
    Bottom dweller
  • “Based on previous year and lack of “go” in game 1.”
    Bottom dweller

Themes are grouped by hand, and one answer can touch more than one theme. Quotes are shown as written, sometimes shortened, and never with a name or tracking code.

In the headlines

What was being written around the season opener check-in

Season check-ins

A new survey goes up at each milestone.

  1. Training Camp Start

    Closed Sep 20, 2026

    Results in

  2. Season OpenerYou're here

    Closed Oct 1, 2026

    Results in

  3. Game 10

    Opens after Game 10

    Upcoming

  4. Game 20

    Date to be announced

    Upcoming

  5. Game 30

    Date to be announced

    Upcoming

  6. Game 42

    Date to be announced

    Upcoming

  7. Game 50

    Date to be announced

    Upcoming

  8. Game 60

    Date to be announced

    Upcoming

  9. Game 70

    Date to be announced

    Upcoming

  10. Game 80

    Date to be announced

    Upcoming

No survey is open right now. The next one, Game 10, goes up on r/rangers.

Where things stood

At the season opener check-in

Last game: L 3-0 at Boston. Scoreless for 56 minutes, then the Bruins scored three in 75 seconds.

Current streak

L1

Last 10Last 21Overall
Record0-1-00-1-00-1-0
Goal differential-30 GF, 3 GA-30 GF, 3 GA-30 GF, 3 GA
Power play0.0%0/10.0%0/10.0%0/1
Penalty kill100.0%1/1100.0%1/1100.0%1/1

Injuries

  • Vincent Iorio (D): On injured reserve with a lower-body injury; skating in a noncontact jersey.

Methodology

How the survey works

The question

Every check-in asks the same single question, worded exactly the same way:

As of today, where do you project the Rangers finishing this season?

The answer options

Respondents pick one of six options. Each option has a score, and the sentiment index is the average score across every response in that check-in.

Answer option (as worded in the survey)Score
Stanley Cup Favorites100
Stanley Cup Contenders80
Strong Playoff Team60
Fighting For Playoff Spot40
Bottom Dwelling Team20
Lottery Team Fighting For #1 Pick0

Who answers

  • The survey is a Google Form shared in a post on r/rangers at each check-in. Anyone with the link can respond, so the sample is self-selected and skews toward people active on the sub.
  • Responses are anonymous. There's an optional field for a reddit name or unique code so people can track their own answers across the season. Those codes are never published on this page.
  • Starting with the season opener, there's also an optional “why did you choose that answer?” box. The quotes on this page come from it.
  • Each survey stays open for a few days after the milestone. Results only include responses submitted before it closes.

When check-ins happen

Training Camp Start, Season Opener, Game 10, Game 20, Game 30, Game 42, Game 50, Game 60, Game 70, Game 80. The record and injury snapshot for each check-in reflect the day the survey opened.

Limits

The spacing between answers is a simplification. The jump from “Bottom Dwelling Team” to “Fighting For Playoff Spot” isn't necessarily the same size as the jump from “Stanley Cup Contenders” to “Stanley Cup Favorites,” but even spacing keeps the index simple and easy to compare from one check-in to the next. Treat it as a pulse check of the sub, not a poll of all Rangers fans.

A note from the author

Why is a hockey tracker on a marketing agency's website?

Mindful Conversion is a small agency, and hosting side projects here is easy and free. Tracking how a group's expectations shift over time is also the same kind of work we do with customer sentiment and campaign data. The Rangers are just a more fun dataset.

LET'S GO RANGERS!
Nicolas Garfinkel