2026 Rangers Report Card: Conor Sheary

This article is part of an ongoing series of Rangers Report Cards, grading the performance of each member of the 2025-26 New York Rangers. To view more report cards in this series, go here.

To read the Season Preview for Conor Sheary, go here. 

One of the first moves the New York Rangers made once new head coach Mike Sullivan accepted the job was bringing in his former player, Conor Sheary, for a professional tryout. The two have a history together, having both been with the Pittsburgh Penguins organization during their back-to-back Stanley Cup wins in 2016 and 2017, along with the fact that Sheary is Sullivan's nephew-in-law. During the 2024-25 season, Sheary was in the AHL with the Tampa Bay Lightning's affiliate, the Syracuse Crunch. Even after a year in the minors, Sheary became a mainstay in the lineup when healthy and spent the entirety of the season with the Rangers.

Expectations

My expectations for Sheary were to be veteran forward on a two-way contract, primarily playing for the Hartford Wolf Pack, helping guide the organization's young players, and getting the occasional call-up when injuries happened. This was not the case. The actual plan for Sheary once he signed a one-year deal were that he would play on the third line, serving as a consistent defensive presence.

Because of his skillset, Sheary also had the potential to serve as a penalty killer for the Rangers. In his last season at the NHL level, Sheary appeared on the Lightning short-handed unit in 21 of the 57 games he played in. On the other side of the ice, there was not a lot to get fans excited for. Since the 2022-23 season, Sheary's point totals have dropped each year, and going into the 2025-26 season it had been over a year since his last NHL goal.

Even though the initial plan was for Sheary to play at the NHL level, he proved he could still be a useful AHL piece. During the 2024-25 season with the Crunch, Sheary registered 61 points in 59 games. He finished the season tied for the 10th most points in the league, and if sent down, could have provided help to a Wolf Pack team that greatly needed it.

Performance

62 GP | 7 G | 11 A | 18 P | +1 | 81 SOG | 14 PIM

These numbers from Sheary are about what could have been expected from the veteran forward. In only five more games played, Sheary recorded three more points than he did in his last season primarily playing in the NHL. He did find the back of the net seven times, but it took him a while to get going, taking him until December to score his first goal since April 2024. Similar to most Rangers, his play took off following the Olympic break, where he scored half of his points.

Sheary also spent time on the Rangers' second power play unit, where he tallied zero goals and two assists. He did also have a short-handed goal in one of their final games of the season against the Florida Panthers. Having taken up a middle-six winger spot, you would have hoped for more from Sheary, but that is not his game. The late-season surge helped him improve his numbers, but this type of offensive production is not nearly good enough to justify where he is in the lineup.

As mentioned earlier, the main reason for bringing in Sheary was his defensive abilities, and that is primarily what he brought to the Blueshirts. Sheary finished in the top five among Rangers in both goals allowed per 60 (GA/60) and xGA/60 while at even strength, per Evolving Hockey. He may not have been a very versatile player, but it is hard to discredit his defensive play while at five on five.

Unfortunately, his play did not directly translate when playing on the penalty kill. Over the course of the season, Sheary accounted for just under 35 minutes killing off penalties. According to Evolving Hockey, Sheary registered a -0.042 GA/60 when short-handed. This ranked fourth among nine Rangers forwards with a minimum of 30 minutes killing penalties. While this is a solid statistic for a short-handed unit that ranked in the top half of the league.

However, the underlying statistics on the penalty kill are not as strong for Sheary. Evolving Hockey credited him with a 0.656 xGA/60, the second worst among the Rangers' forwards. Due to the multiple options the team had to deploy and having missed time due to injury, Sheary did not have the highest time on ice, but that also has to do with the fact the team had better and younger players they could utilize in those situations.

Grades

Author's Grade: C

Banter Consensus: C+

Final Evaluation

Examining Conor Sheary's season is interesting, as he was playing in a spot in the lineup that he should not have been. His performance on defense did exceed what I believed he was capable. On top of playing more minutes than he should have at 33 and having just played in the AHL, he served as a consistent defensive presence. His offense was fine but, as mentioned before, did not justify the time on ice he was given.

I fully expect Sheary to sign another deal with the New York Rangers and return for the 2026-27 season. It will likely be another one-year contract, but I do expect it to hit the $1 million mark and will not be a two-way deal like the one he signed this past offseason. Many fans will be opposed to bringing him back, but I do not think it would be the end of the world.

Sheary has the makings of an ideal 13th forward for the Rangers. As an older experienced player, he does not need to be playing every game, and if there is a long stretch of games where he doesn't draw into the lineup, it is fine. His strength as a defensive forward makes him an ideal candidate to draw into the lineup if a player were to get hurt at any point. With Jonny Brodzinski likely out the door, this could pave the way for Sheary to take his old role.

Unfortunately, I do believe that Sheary will have a larger role than being the 13th forward. Similar to this season, he will likely start the year on the third line with Noah Laba and Tye Kartye. Sullivan displayed over the course of his first season in the Big Apple that he trusts veteran players much more than younger inexperienced players.

The time between now and the start of next season is quite some time away. As free agency, the draft, and what happens with Vincent Trocheck unfold, we will see if Conor Sheary returns and get an idea of what kind of role he will play.