Noah Laba's Development Hinges on Easing Rangers' Defensive Load

Noah Laba's progression in his second season with the New York Rangers will be measured by his ability to contribute offensively and, crucially, by his effectiveness in defensive zone faceoffs. Coach Mike Sullivan sees Laba's potential to alleviate the ice time burdens on veteran centers Mika Zibanejad and J.T. Miller by taking on more defensive responsibilities.

Laba's rookie campaign saw him record nine goals and 24 points, demonstrating significant promise. However, his faceoff performance was a notable area for improvement. With a 50.8 percent success rate on draws, he ranked as the lowest among the Rangers' regular centers and 78th in the NHL among those with at least 300 faceoffs. Despite this, Sullivan expressed confidence in Laba's faceoff abilities and his understanding of the team's system.

"Last year, we leaned on J.T. and Mika a lot in those situations," Sullivan stated. "[Laba] was a young guy, trying to find his way in the league, and I didn’t want to put him in difficult spots. I think now he’s got a year under his belt. … So our hope is that maybe we can take J.T. and Mika out of some of those situations and deploy them in a more advantageous situation offensively to try to take advantage of their strength as a group."

In the previous season, Zibanejad averaged 20:54 of ice time, the highest since the 2019-20 season, and led the team with 412 defensive zone faceoffs. Miller's ice time also increased to 20:09, up from 18:31 in his abbreviated 2024-25 season, and he took 294 faceoffs in the defensive zone. This increased ice time for Zibanejad and Miller was partly due to their roles on the penalty kill and top power-play unit.

Sullivan aims to reduce the penalty-killing minutes for Miller and Zibanejad, a task he believes Laba's line can assist with through winning defensive zone draws. Last year, Laba, then vying for a roster spot, secured 236 defensive zone faceoffs, winning 50 percent. "Faceoffs are a big part of the game," Laba, 23, commented. "So just continuing to get my faceoff percentage up is only gonna help the team and help in those crucial D-zone draws."

Laba has skated with Will Cuylle throughout the preseason, and the pair have been joined by newcomer Eeli Tolvanen. Sullivan views this combination as capable of enhancing the Rangers' top-nine forward group. Despite his successful rookie season, Laba feels he has more to prove, focusing on puck retention, playmaking, and increasing his offensive output. He has set personal offensive goals for the 2026-27 season, aiming to generate more scoring chances and trusting that goals will follow.

"Like Sully said, if our line’s able to relieve some of those minutes from those top guys, it’s big," Laba added, acknowledging the added responsibility to support the team's offensive endeavors by strengthening their defensive capabilities.