Rangers snap 5-game skid as Mika Zibanejad's hat trick keys win over Flyers
The Rangers' Mika Zibanejad celebrates his goal with Scott Morrow during the second period against the Flyers at Xfinity Mobile Arena on Jan. 17, 2026 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Credit: Getty Images/Emilee Chinn
PHILADELPHIA — The day after “The Letter,” Rangers coach Mike Sullivan said his soon-to-be-torn-down team is “going to try to win every game in front of us.”
The first game was Saturday afternoon against the Flyers, and the loosey-goosey Rangers snapped a five-game losing streak with a 6-3 victory at Xfinity Mobile Arena.
Mika Zibanejad scored his 10th career hat trick, Artemi Panarin had two goals and an assist, Brennan Othmann picked up his first NHL goal and Spencer Martin stopped 25 shots in his first start with the Rangers.
On Friday, general manager Chris Drury released a letter to fans that said the Rangers are going to “retool” and added, “That may mean saying goodbye to players that have brought us and our fans great moments over the years.”
So trades are coming before the March 6 deadline. Drury’s letter was released after practice on Friday, so Saturday was the first chance for Sullivan and the players to react, both in terms of speaking with the media and with the players’ performance on the ice.
Of the circumstances, Zibanejad said: “It’s not an easy situation. A little, I think, overwhelmed with a lot of emotions, feelings and thoughts about it. I thought the way we responded today was great.”
Panarin, who is in the final year of his contract and reportedly has been told the Rangers aren’t going to re-sign him, said: “It’s hard to say how I feel. I feel confused. But the team decided to go in a different direction. I’m OK with that and I’m a Ranger player right now, so I’ve got to play every game 100%.”
Panarin, who played in his 800th game Saturday, declined to answer any other questions about the situation.
Change is in the air.
“It’s probably a fairly common-sensical statement to suggest that when you don’t meet expectations or you don’t have success, then change is inevitable in pro sports,” Sullivan, who picked up his 500th NHL coaching win, said before the game. “I think our team is well aware of that, and that’s to a certain extent what we all sign up for. I don’t know that an acknowledgment of this is something the players haven’t already thought about or considered as we go through this . . . We’re all human beings. We all understand the business. We all understand the game.”
Sullivan, in his first year as Rangers coach, said: “I understand the process. What I’ll tell you is that I’m all-in on trying to help this organization move forward. Chris and I have talked throughout this whole process. We have a very transparent relationship. I’m going to try to do everything in my power to try to help this team. I’m going to control what I can and try to be the very best coach I can be for this organization.”
Sullivan’s message to the team?
“The message is that we’re going to control what’s within our power, and that’s our effort, our attitude and our intentions when we go on the ice,” he said. “That’s where our focus needs to be. The reality is we’re not where we want to be, we’re not where we hope to be, and so this is the business side of the game. But as players, as coaches, it’s our job to do our best to control what we can, and we’re going to stay in the moment. We’re going to try to win every game in front of us and we’re going to try to play the game with pride.”
They did on Saturday.
“I just think it speaks volumes for the character of the people in that room,” Sullivan said. “The last couple of days have been pretty emotional for the whole group.”
The Rangers responded quickly after Travis Konecny gave the Flyers a 1-0 lead in the first period, scoring three goals in 1:20.
Panarin tied it, Zibanejad gave the Rangers the lead 19 seconds later, Othmann scored his first goal in his 34th career game and the Rangers led 3-1 just 8:25 in. Three shots, three goals, and the Flyers pulled goalie Alexei Kolosov for Samuel Ersson.
Zibanejad made it 5-1 with a pair of goals in the second, the first on the power play. His 117th power-play goal is the most in franchise history. He had been tied with Camille Henry and Chris Kreider.
Notes & quotes: Zibanejad’s hat trick was his ninth with the Rangers, tying him for the most in franchise history with Bill Cook. Zibanejad has an eight-game point streak (nine goals, eight assists) . . . Panarin extended his point streak to nine games. He has four goals and 12 assists in that span . . . The Rangers are 16-9-2 on the road and 5-13-4 at home. Their 16 road wins rank second in the league.
Anthony Rieber covers sports media and business and professional sports (you know, games and trades and things). He has worked at Newsday since Aug. 31, 1998, and has been in his current position since Jan. 1, 2026.
