Rangers Hold Out Zibanejad Against Ducks for Missing Team Meeting
The Rangers open their reunion night without Mika Zibanejad, who was held out for missing a team meeting, prompting major power-play adjustments and delaying his on-ice meeting with old friends.
Tonight will be a reunion of sorts, with the Anaheim Ducks visiting New York for the first time since Chris Kreider and Jacob Trouba were unceremoniously shipped out of town to Orange County. Mika Zibanejad, however, will miss out on it all. The Rangers center will be a healthy scratch for tonight's game after missing a team meeting earlier today.
Mika Zibanejad won’t play tonight, according to Sullivan. He missed a team meeting and this is the consequence. #NYR
— Vince Z. Mercogliano (@vzmercogliano) December 15, 2025
This will mean that Zibanejad and Kreider, famously close friends in addition to being teammates for nine seasons on the Rangers, won't face-off against each other tonight. His next opportunity to meet his good friend, as well as other former teammates like Jacob Trouba, on the ice will be when Rangers will travel west to face the Ducks in Anaheim on Jan. 19.
Vincent Mercogliano of The Athletic went on to quote head coach Mike Sullivan as saying:
"[T]here are logistical challenges the city presents” that caused Zibanejad’s lateness, but added, “Mika understands the importance of the rules that we all expect of one another.”
“He feels terribly. The one thing about Mika is he's an honest person. He's a great human being and he takes responsibility for it.”
Artemi Panarin will take over the role of power play quarterback from Zibanejad on the team's new version of the five-forward power play, while Will Cuylle was bumped up to the top special teams unit to fill the void.
This will be the first game of the season Mika Zibanejad will miss.
