Rangers opt to use Shesterkin vs. Lightning in back to back
Igor Shesterkin is a big reason why the New York Rangers are 3-0-0 this week. Coach Mike Sullivan is giving him the chance to go 4-for-4 when the Tampa Bay Lightning come to Madison Square Garden on Saturday afternoon, 24 hours after No. 31 made 19 saves in a 6-2 road win against the Boston Bruins on Friday.
Sullivan disclosed Saturday morning that with regular backup Jonathan Quick on injured reserve, he’ll use Shesterkin in back-to-back games for the first time this season.
“We’re going to manage it accordingly,” Sullivan said. “Quickie’s on the ice right now. He has been on the ice the last couple of days. We’ll see where it goes. We wanted to get through this week, and we’ll see how much progress he makes and then we’ll make a decision on where it goes.”
Sullivan tries to limit his No. 1 goaltender’s workload – and it paid off again Friday, when Shesterkin allowed two or fewer goals for the 12th time this season, tying him for the most such games in the NHL this season. He’s won six of his past eight starts and improved to 10-8-2. His 2.45 goals-against average and .911 save percentage are among the top 10 in the NHL in each category among goalies who’ve played at least 10 games.
It’s Shesterkin’s 21st start in 27 games this season. Rookie Dylan Garand dressed as the backup for the fourth straight game.
“What I will tell you is that we’re very much aware of Shesty’s workload,” Sullivan said. “I think to this point in the season, we’ve done a fairly decent job in managing his workload between him and Quickie, so that when you get in situations like this, if you have to lean on him a little bit, we believe we can and he’s capable. But obviously that’s not something long term that we’re comfortable with. And if it requires moving other guys in there, then we’ll make those decisions at the time.”
Sullivan was coy on Friday when asked who would play against the Lightning.
“Might I?” he replied when asked whether he planned to start Shesterkin in back-to-back games for the first time since March 15-16, 2025, and just the sixth time in his NHL career – twice after being pulled in the first game. “I might.”
But when asked “Will you?” his reply was simple: “I’ll tell you tomorrow.”
Sullivan’s decision on goalie use in back-to-backs this season usually consists of deciding which game Shesterkin gets and which goes to Quick, one of the League’s top No. 2 goalies. But Quick appeared to injure his right leg in a crease collision late in the third period of a 3-2 loss to the Utah Mammoth on Saturday; the Rangers placed him on injured reserve Tuesday and brought up Garand from AHL Hartford to take his place.
The 23-year-old had an up-and-down preseason and a slow start to his fourth pro season in Hartford. He’s 3-6-2 as the No. 1 goalie for the mediocre Wolf Pack, with a 2.96 GAA and .897 save percentage. That’s a drop-off from last season, when Garand was an AHL All-Star, won 20 games for the first time as a pro, and tied for ninth among all goalies with a .913 save percentage.
Garand has yet to play in an NHL game. Sullivan obviously decided that facing the red-hot Lightning, who will also be playing the second of back-to-back games after a 6-3 road victory against the Detroit Red Wings that extended their winning streak to six, was too much to ask of an untested rookie.
Sullivan was cagey about who would start in the back-to-back games ever since Quick landed on IR.
“I’m not sure yet. We’re going to take each game as it comes. We’ll probably make decisions on a game-by-game basis,” he said Tuesday. “What I will tell you is I think because we’ve managed ‘Shesty’s’ workload to this point fairly well, if anyone’s in a position to take on more of a workload, I think Shesty’s [in a position] to do that.”
