Daily Report – 1/16/26
Rangers
The Rangers haven’t earned a regulation win at home since November 24. Today is January 16, and with an 8-4 loss to Ottawa on Wednesday, the Rangers have lost a season-high five straight contests, and nine of their previous 11. They haven’t even won a game indoors since December 23.
But it gets worse. Stuck at 46 points, the Blueshirts have officially reached the basement of the Eastern Conference standings, and the state of the team is growing bleaker every day. Eight goals are way too many to give up. Trailing 4-0 at the end of the first period is unacceptable.
Defense, defense, defense. I find it inexplicable how head coach Mike Sullivan preached getting back on defense from day one at the helm, yet, amid what can officially be deemed as another season collapse on Broadway, the Rangers’ defensemen are missing their marks. Just like they did last year when the Blueshirts fell out of playoff contention.
Braden Schneider was visibly responsible for two of Ottawa’s goals on Wednesday: A puck that deflected off his skate and past Jonathan Quick, and a poor turnover when he tried to press on offense but couldn’t get back to defend an odd-man rush. Both of Schneider’s mistakes came on consecutive goals in the first period.
Noah Laba made a similar mistake on Ottawa’s fourth goal, which came with 5.7 seconds left in the opening frame. After Schneider missed his check, Laba missed the puck and got caught dodging a defender. He couldn’t communicate with Vladislav Gavrikov in the defensive slot, who fell behind Dylan Cozens.
On Ottawa’s sixth goal, which came six minutes into the second period, Matthew Robertson also made a poor defensive play. He was chilling below the left circle, far from his position, and he blocked Quick’s view as Thomas Chabot put Ottawa ahead 6-0.
Ottawa made life difficult for the Rangers from the start of the game. After possessing the puck for the first minute and a half of the opening period, the Rangers were immediately penalized upon entering the attacking zone. Vincent Trocheck was assessed a holding penalty, and Drake Batherson had an easy time cashing in on the man-advantage.
“We take a penalty early on in the game, give them a power play right away,” said Sullivan. “They score on the power play, they get momentum right off the bat. It’s a tough way to start the game. We’ve got to find a way to have more resilience, be able to recover, and overcome that.”
Remarkably, the Rangers couldn’t generate a single scoring chance in the first period, and according to Natural Stat Trick, Ottawa created 13. Somehow, that was the same number of scoring chances with which the Rangers finished the entire game.
“I just think when you go through struggles the way we’re going through them, our confidence isn’t at an all-time high,” Sullivan remarked. “And when things don’t go the right way, especially early on in the game, it can affect the mindset of the group.”
In the words of JT Miller postgame, “No s**t.”
Honestly, come on, Sullivan. Rangers fans across the world are bewildered by the countless disappointments this year’s team has brought. I understand there isn’t much else for Sullivan to say, but recall that, from the start of this season, he worked hard to create a winning culture. For example, the post-game meeting he held after the Rangers gave up four straight goals in their first preseason loss was supposed to define the expectations he had in his first year in New York.
“I think for the first part of the season, a fair number of games, I think we were a pretty stingy team with that collective effort, especially on the defensive side of the puck,” Sullivan said. “I think we’ve lost a little bit of that, just attention to detail and just collective, cooperative play as a group.”
Whatever standard Sullivan tried to set is lost, just as easily as the Rangers fell from winning the Presidents’ Trophy to missing the playoffs last season. But the core was protesting against management at the time. That is not the case this year. So, what gives? Why has the energy left the building? Why does it feel like this team is so mentally weak?
“[The Senators] were more ready to play,” Miller suggested.
That’s one answer.
“Our forecheck wasn’t good enough,” Vincent Trocheck proclaimed.
That’s another.
“If I had the answer, if we had the answer, then I don’t think we would have looked like that,” Zibanejad stated.
Sure, that’s a third.
I’ll add that Jonathan Quick wasn’t very good in his 800th career start on Wednesday. The veteran goaltender turns 40 in six days, and he has gone 0-4-0 in consecutive starts since taking over the starting role. He exited yesterday’s game midway through the second period after surrendering six goals, including two low-danger and one mid-danger, on 17 shots (Natural Stat Trick). It was the second time in his last three games that he got pulled early.
“Here’s what I’ll tell you about Quickie: He’s a fierce competitor, and he gives you everything he has every day that he steps on the ice,” Sullivan said. “I just have so much admiration and respect for what he brings to the table.”
The Rangers are stuck in an impossible situation without Igor Shesterkin, since their third-string goalie, Spencer Martin, doesn’t have much NHL experience. In relief of Quick, Martin only allowed one goal, but it came three minutes after Gabe Perreault cut the Rangers’ deficit to four.
Perreault, the youngest active Ranger, was the only bright spot for the Rangers on Wednesday, earning his first-career multi-goal game. Both of his shots came on the backhand as he meticulously maneuvered the puck past Ottawa’s goalie Leevi Meriläinen.
Perreault’s compelling performance furthered the argument that the Rangers need to tear down their current roster and rebuild around their youth. So did the fact that Noah Laba and Alexis Lafrenière accounted for the Rangers’ two other goals.
Also, the Rangers will not be offering Artemi Panarin a contract extension, per multiple reports. His time on Broadway is coming to a close.
Knicks
Defensive issues persisted to plague the Knicks yesterday as they surrendered a 17-point lead in a 126-113 loss to the Golden State Warriors. The Knicks, losers of seven of their last nine games, were without Jalen Brunson or Mitchell Robinson, but they regained Landry Shamet for the first time in 25 games. It didn’t matter, though, because Miles McBride couldn’t hold back Stephen Curry in the fourth quarter, and Karl-Anthony Towns got called for five personal fouls.
When the Knicks don’t have Brunson, they usually run their offense through Towns. However, Towns also ruins their pace of play. The Knicks did a lot more right in this game from the opening tip. Towns was a monster on the glass, finishing the first half with a double-double and the game with 20 boards, including eight offensive rebounds. However, he only scored six points in the entire second half.
Amid ongoing talks in Milwaukee about Giannis Antetokounmpo’s future, many Knicks fans want to trade for the Greek Freak. However, for the Knicks to do that, they would have to shed a lot of capital they don’t possess. Towns is one of their most eligible trade pieces, but when he performs as poorly as he did last night, it makes teams like the Bucks less likely to want him.
In games like yesterday’s, when Towns is tasked with running his team’s offense, and he fails miserably, it becomes easy to argue that he is holding the Knicks back. In many respects, it feels like Towns brings the Knicks down so much that they will never be able to win a championship with him on their team.
However, for the Knicks to remain championship contenders without Towns, they will have to find a way to replace his production, which is not easy, especially with the NBA Trade Deadline approaching on February 5.
The Knicks are facing a critical moment as they’ve reached the midway point of their season with a 25-16 record and third place in the Eastern Conference. Since New Year’s Eve, they have recorded the second-worst defensive rating in the NBA. Forget about Towns’s offensive struggles; he is a very poor defender.
“I thought we did a good job in the first half as a team, getting a lead and stuff,” Towns said. “We just didn’t, you know, didn’t do it for 48 minutes, and that’s a really good team that has championship pedigree.”
Head coach Mike Brown was supposed to transform this team defensively. It feels like most of his players are trying to commit to defense, especially late in games, but Towns doesn’t seem to fit Brown’s mold. For the third straight game, he received limited minutes in the fourth quarter. His seven ticks on court were the fewest among Knicks starters.
The Knicks’ problems yesterday extended beyond missing Jalen Brunson. They continue to struggle to block shots, clog driving lanes, or space out around the perimeter. Hart understands that reality.
“It’s going to be a good challenge for us in terms of how we respond to it,” Hart said before the game. “At some point, we have to take responsibility and take the challenge on the defensive end. We put a lot of emphasis, and we’re talking about offense, guys’ roles, and all those kinds of things. But the last month, we’ve been a terrible defensive team.”
Miles McBride did not do a very good job of defending Stephen Curry. The Warriors star scored 27 points, including two key fourth-quarter triples that extended Golden State’s lead to 13 and 14 points. Curry only hit four three-pointers in the game, but McBride couldn’t hold him back in crunch time.
McBride was excited to guard Curry. “For me at least, it’s more energy, having more fun, chasing,” he said. “You’re always engaged, always in action. And I love it rather [than] guarding a guy that kind of stands in a corner.”
With seven made three-pointers, Moses Moody made up for the three-point shooting production Curry couldn’t offer. Also, off the bench, Brandin Podziemski consistently disrupted the pace of play, recording a game-high +22 rating in 26 minutes. A couple of no-name players had their way against the Knicks.
“At some point, we’ve got to stop making excuses,” Josh Hart stated. “We’ve got to wake up. We’ve got to make sure we’re locked in on the game plan and put effort in on that side of the ball. When we do that, we’re going to flourish offensively, we’re going to get more possessions, we’re going to run faster, we’re going to play our kind of style.”
Draymond Green mocked whatever character the Knicks tried to build in this game. With 11 minutes remaining in regulation, Karl-Anthony Towns knocked him over, but Green grabbed his leg and was assessed a flagrant foul. When Towns missed his second free throw, Green skipped with glee like a child. He repeatedly teased the Knicks’ bench all night, but they never responded.
15 seconds after Green’s foul, the officials tried to review another foul to see if a flagrant violation had occurred, but they didn’t think so. It would have been the quickest consecutive flagrant foul calls to start a quarter in NBA history.
Then, with 9:28 left, OG Anunoby was half a second late on a three-point shot. The call announcing that Anunoby’s shot had been overturned came directly from the NBA Replay Center. A random deep voice announced it to the Chase Center crowd, adding a long pause between “has been” and “overturned.” I’m sure Green thought that was funny, too.
The Knicks were deflated by the overturned call, and they didn’t have much left to offer Golden State. Now, they are preparing to return to Madison Square Garden after finishing their West Coast road trip 1-3. They will host the aggressive Phoenix Suns tomorrow, a team to which they lost last Friday.
Schedule
Saturday 1/17:
1:00 PM (12:00 PM CST): NYR at PHI; MSG, Gotham Sports
4:30 PM (3:30 PM CST): NFL Divisional Round, AFC Game 1 – Buffalo Bills (6) at Denver Broncos (1); CBS, Paramount+
3:30 PM (2:30 PM CST): The NFL Today, Divisional Round; CBS
7:30 PM (6:30 PM CST): NYK vs. PHX; MSG, Gotham Sports
8:00 PM (7:00 PM CST): NFL Divisional Round, NFC Game 1 – San Francisco 49ers (6) at Seattle Seahawks (1); FOX, FOX ONE
7:30 PM (6:30 PM CST): NFL on FOX Pregame, Divisional Round; FOX
10:00 PM (9:00 PM CST): 2026 Australian Open, Men’s and Women’s First Round; ESPN2
Sunday 1/18:
3:00 PM (2:00 PM CST): NFL Divisional Round, AFC Game 2 – Houston Texans (5) at New England Patriots (2); ESPN, ABC
12:00 PM (11:00 AM CST): Postseason NFL Countdown, Divisional Round; ESPN, ABC
2:45 PM (1:45 PM CST): Divisional Round Kickoff; ESPN, ABC
6:30 PM (5:30 PM CST): NFL Divisional Round, NFC Game 2 – Los Angeles Rams (5) at Chicago Bears (2); NBC, Peacock
6:00 PM (5:00 PM CST): Football Night in America (FNIA), Divisional Round; NBC
7:00 PM (6:00 PM CST): 2026 Australian Open, Men’s and Women’s First Round; ESPN2
