He'll get a chance to do that in New York, where he likely will center one of the top two lines. Zibanejad's production has improved in each of the past two seasons, and he had 64 goals and 87 assists in 281 NHL games with Ottawa.
"I feel like I can skate very good for a bigger guy," Zibanejad (6-foot-2, 222 pounds) said. "I feel like my shot is getting improved every year and my hockey sense is there. I feel like I'm a pretty all-around solid and good player. As a young player, you can always improve in every different aspect of your game.
"Obviously, keep working on faceoffs and keep working on the little details that will help me and the team to be successful. I feel like I'm solid all-around, but I'm not happy just yet with what I've accomplished and where I am. I'm just looking forward to every year that goes by to get a little bit better and make a bigger impact every year as well."
There will be some pressure on Zibanejad to continue his steady improvement, this time for a Rangers team that is trying to maintain its status of being a Stanley Cup contender with goaltender Henrik Lundqvist, who will turn 35 before the start of the 2017 Stanley Cup Playoffs. Zibanejad said he's confident with the roster as currently constructed.
"It's an Original Six team," Zibanejad said. "The status of the team is very high anywhere you go. I think as far as the roster goes, it looks really, really promising and really interesting. It's a team that goes for the Cup every year and is a big contender for it. I'm really happy to be a part of this and [I'm] hoping I can add more to that as well.
"Some of the guys reached out [Monday] after the trade and welcomed me, just texting me a little bit and had some conversations with them. I'm happy. I'm really excited to get this thing started."
One such player was Senators captain Erik Karlsson.