The Winter Classic is special, but Rangers' focus needs to be on leaving Miami with two points

MIAMI — There’s no question that for NHL players, getting to play in outdoor games, and in the Winter Classic, especially, is a treat. And so, Friday’s game between the Rangers and the two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers in this season’s NHL Winter Classic at loanDepot Park, home of baseball’s Miami Marlins, was a big deal.

“Events like these, I think, are a great opportunity for teams to embrace camaraderie, with a lot of the activities and the events that take place off the ice around this event,’’ Rangers coach Mike Sullivan said after his team’s practice at the stadium on Thursday. “There's a certain level of excitement around these events that I think brings out the very best in our sport. And I think it's such a privilege to have the opportunity to participate in these types of events.’’

But the 19-18-5 Rangers could only afford to enjoy the experience so much. They had their families with them for some team activities and a family skate following practice Thursday. And they all wore whimsical all-white outfits on their walk into the stadium Friday.

“We tried to kind of mix a, I don't know, beach theme, but not come in bathing suits — be a little bit more professional,’’ Will Cuylle said before the game. “So we thought the all-white was a good solution for that.’’

All of that aside, if this was a showcase for the NHL and a celebration of the game, the Rangers, who had lost three straight (0-2-1) and were last in the Eastern Conference in points percentage (.512) entering Friday, had to treat it as a straight up business trip. No soaking up the 70-degree sunshine, and keep the reminiscing about playing on frozen ponds and backyard rinks to a minimum.

Defenseman Adam Fox, playing his second game after returning from a shoulder injury that kept him out of action for 14 games, was asked if playing in a spectacle like the Winter Classic might be a distraction to a Rangers team desperate to stay in a crowded Eastern Conference playoff race.

“I think it depends how you want to take it,’’ Fox said. “It's fun, it's a cool experience. Obviously, we want to win the game, get the two points for that. But it's a really good team that we're playing, and a team that we're trying to catch in the standings, too. So it's a big two points for that.

“But wouldn't say it’s distraction for the team. I think it’s a really good opportunity that we're gonna try to take full advantage of.’’

Coming off last season’s disappointment, in which they missed the playoffs, traded away a good chunk of their roster, and ultimately fired coach Peter Laviolette, the Rangers had hoped to bounce back in a big way this season under new coach Sullivan. But they have been shut out eight times (including twice by the rival Islanders), have lost to the last-place team in the league three times, and have been pretty much a .500 team all season.

“I think we've got to work a little harder,’’ leading scorer Artemi Panarin said Thursday when asked what the Rangers need to do more of to get things going in the right direction. “When we have a special team in front of us who has more skill, we’ve got to work more than them, for sure. That's, I think [something] we don't do enough this year.’’

It doesn’t help that, at the moment, they are dealing with injuries. Captain J.T. Miller (who earlier Friday was named to the U.S. Olympic team) missed his sixth straight game with an apparent shoulder injury. And forwards Noah Laba (upper-body injury) and Conor Sheary (lower-body injury) were out as well, and will be for a while. Laba is considered week-to-week, and Sheary is on long-term injured reserve and shouldn’t be expected back “anytime soon,’’ according to Sullivan.

So times are pretty desperate for a team that aspires to make the playoffs. After Friday, they have 14 games until the Olympic break, and when they return, they have four games before the March 6 trade deadline. So they have 18 games before they have to decide if they are buying or selling.

Selling would mean being resigned to miss the playoffs a second straight year and perhaps moving Panarin, who had 14 goals and 41 points in 41 games entering Friday, but is in the final year of his contract. It could also mean trading forward Vincent Trocheck, the team’s other U.S. Olympian. He has a 12-team no-trade clause.

Playing in the Winter Classic is supposed to be fun. But in their current situation, the Rangers don’t have a lot of time for fun right now.

By Colin Stephenson

colin.stephenson@newsday.comColinSNewsday

Colin Stephenson covers the Rangers for Newsday. He has spent more than two decades covering the NHL and just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.