The finale was fitting for the Knicks, who punctuated their worst season in franchise history with a 112-90 loss — a result largely indistinguishable from their other 64 losses this season. Sated with free food and drink on fan appreciation night, the crowd cheered and groaned, bearing witness to the bitter end.

Image Mats Zuccarello of the Rangers, who set a franchise record for victories and points this season. Credit... Adam Hunger/USA Today Sports, via Reuters

If the Knicks (17-65) are searching for a model in their pursuit of respectability, they could do worse than the Rangers, who occupy the same training facility in Greenburgh, N.Y. Glen Sather, the Rangers’ president and general manager since 2000, has helped to provide the sort of stability that the Knicks have lacked atop their organization.

While James L. Dolan, who owns both teams, has been meddlesome with the Knicks, in constant search of the quick fix, he has left Sather to do his work with something that at least approaches autonomy. The Rangers are aiming for a second straight trip to the N.H.L. finals. The Knicks, who have cycled through general managers and coaches as if they were ratty socks, have made three playoff appearances in the last 11 seasons. Phil Jackson, the Knicks’ president, has been charged with changing all that.

On Wednesday morning, the Rangers practiced for about an hour: short and to the point. Afterward, Coach Alain Vigneault touched on some of the usual topics ahead of the playoffs: injuries, lineups and tactics, albeit in the vaguest terms possible. The postseason was going to be “very challenging,” he said, but his team was going to be “focused on the game at hand.”

Vigneault also paid his respects to the Penguins, who are led by Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin.

“We’re going to have to do a real solid job against them,” Vigneault said.