I believe the Rangers were one of the 4 teams that voted No vs. this re-alignment proposal. I think they were content with 6-div format—
Pierre LeBrun (@Real_ESPNLeBrun) December 06, 2011

The vote passed in favor of realignment 26-4.

It is believed that the four teams that voted NO were from the Eastern Conference, so that would make sense that the Rangers were one of them. It is more travel out west for the Rangers and fewer games against the Bruins, Canadiens and Maple Leafs who are all such a big part of the Rangers history.