New York Rangers debate: Concern level over Igor Shesterkin’s recent subpar play
Igor Shesterkin was superb during the New York Rangers 5-0-1 start. But his numbers have tailed off during the Rangers’ subsequent 8-10-0 slide. His goals-against average has climbed to 3.05, 35th among all NHL goalies who’ve played at least 10 games this season. His .908 save percentage is mainly due to his early-season brilliance. More alarmingly, the 28-year-old goalie has an .882 save percentage and a 3.66 GAA in his past nine games, when he is 2-7-0. He’s lost his last five starts, including the Rangers’ 5-1 drubbing at the hands of the New Jersey Devils on Monday.
Forever Blueshirts Senior Writer John Kreiser and Executive Editor Jim Cerny debate how much Rangers fans should be concerned about the decline in Shesterkin’s performance over the past few weeks.
Related: Why Igor Shesterkin is part of Rangers problem right now
Debate: Rangers concern about recent Igor Shesterkin struggles
John: The Rangers as a group have struggled badly over the past few weeks — and that includes Shesterkin, who’s begun to allow goals on shots he usually stops without a second thought. Part of the problem is that he (and backup Jonathan Quick) are seeing an inordinate number of high-danger chances at 5-on-5. As per Natural Stat Trick, the Philadelphia Flyers had 16 high-danger chances (10 in the first period) to six for the Rangers in their 3-1 win at Philly on Friday, and the Devils had a 14-9 edge in their 5-1 win at the Garden on Monday. But though Shesterkin was blameless in Philadelphia (and actually kept the Rangers in the game), he was ordinary against the Devils (see the Dawson Mercer goal in the first period that went under his pad) on a night the Rangers were out-played between the pipes — Jacob Markstrom finished with 38 saves and didn’t allow an even-strength goal for the Devils. Oddly enough, Shesterkin has kept the Rangers in games when they’ve been badly outplayed (3-2 loss at Calgary on Nov. 21 and the loss at Philadelphia on Friday) but hasn’t been as good on nights when the play has been a bit more even.
Jim: I think Igor is beaten down mentally from carrying the Rangers night-in and night-out. Maybe it’s easier for him to do that when the stakes are higher in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, like how he maintained his elite level of play last spring when things crumbled around him, especially against the Florida Panthers in the Eastern Conference Final. But it appears much more difficult to keep it up when your teammates are allowing the likes of the Buffalo Sabres and Flyers to buzz you every single game, let alone more skilled teams like the Carolina Hurricanes, Edmonton Oilers and Devils. I don’t think he trusts the team in front of him — for good reason — but now Igor doesn’t quite trust his own game, either. He had a clean look at Jesper Bratt’s game-opening goal against the Devils. Yes, I know it was another 2-on-1 off a defensive breakdown, but when he’s on, Igor makes that stop. It’s what he did regularly earlier in the season when he was at the height of his powers and confidence. That’s not the case now. Igor’s struggles his past nine starts are a major concern for the Rangers. So, I think now’s the time to let Igor reset, which means letting Jonathan Quick start a couple games in a row.
John: I agree that giving Quick some more time might be a good thing. He’s been superb as Igor’s backup (5-1-0, 2.03 GAA, .936 save percentage), and giving him a few starts in a row worked wonders for Shesterkin last season, allowing him to find his A-game again after being less than his usual-brilliant self around the All-Star break. Quick will undoubtedly get a start either Sunday or Monday, when the Rangers have a back-to-back at home against the Seattle Kraken and Chicago Blackhawks; maybe he starts Friday against Pittsburgh and Monday against Chicago, with Shesterkin facing Seattle on Sunday. Igor does look a bit beaten down during the past few weeks. I think he is frustrated with the play of his teammates as well as with his own performance. He can’t be happy with the number of Grade A chances he’s facing; the issue is that he was stopping a lot more of those kind of chances when the stakes were higher last spring, or even in the first 2-3 weeks of the season. For all the talent the Rangers have, they’ll go only as far as Shesterkin takes them; when he’s not playing his A game every night, the team is in trouble — and he’s definitely not at his best on a consistent basis right now.
Jim: Even with three days between games this week, I’d go with Quick in goal against the Penguins, so that he gets two of the next three starts. This isn’t to punish Shesterkin. It’s all about the re-set. It really worked for him last February, and he acknowledged as much. Start Quick two of the next three and figure it out from there. Now, let’s address the elephant in the room: is the contract situation at all weighing on Shesterkin? He’s already turned down a deal that would’ve made him the highest-paid goalie in NHL history. So, he wants more money — probably a lot more money. But for now his play is not at the elite level that led to those massive demands. Does that cause him a downward spiral? Or will outside noise questioning whether he’s worth so much cash be a distraction? Personally, I think those are not overriding issues here — he’s going to get paid a lot of money by someone, either the Rangers or another team in free agency. But I also believe it’s there, somewhere in the recesses of his mind. When goalies are at their best, their mind is clear — so many who’ve played the position told me as such. And Igor’s mind isn’t completely clear right now because of the contract, yes, but worrying about the team around him, too.
John: There’s no way Igor’s contract situation isn’t at least in the back of his mind — and yes, when you want to be the highest-paid goalie in NHL history, playing the way he has for the past 3-4 weeks isn’t helping. Goalies go through slumps, just like every other athlete in every sport. The problem for goaltenders is that they’re arguably the only players in any sport who can win games virtually by themselves — after all, if the other team doesn’t score, you won’t lose. Shesterkin is in a slump right now; the biggest questions are how does he get out of it, and how long does it take. Timing figures to mean a lot this season; unlike 2023-24, the Metropolitan Division is top-heavy, with the Devils, Washington Capitals and Carolina Hurricanes all having taken turns in first place — and if Shesterkin’s slump lasts much longer while the others keep winning, the Rangers will be looking at competing for a wild-card berth rather than a division title. There’s a difference between concern and worry. I’d say Rangers fans should have some concerns about Shesterkin’s play, but that his track record means they shouldn’t worry about him snapping out of it.
Jim: I agree, there’s a level of concern, for sure. But Igor has been far from bad. He just hasn’t been brilliant, which is the bar he’s set for himself. It seems like he has a stretch every season where his game dips — well, maybe not his Vezina Trophy-winning season in 2021-22 — but at the end his numbers are among the best in the League. His struggles right now stand out more because the Rangers as a whole are in such a freefall. My money is on Igor to pull out of this sooner rather than later.
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