Igor Shesterkin

New York Rangers Survive Shark Attack: Now Wait on Trade Deadline Activities

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New York Rangers, Artemi Panarin

It might be a little understandable if the New York Rangers looked a little flat on Saturday night. After playing for the fourth game in the past six days, and dealing with constant trade talk, the Rangers slipped past the San Jose Sharks by the score of 3-2. Igor Shesterkin stopped 44 saves to win for the seventh straight time. Artemi Panarin set up a pair of goals with passes that were beyond spectacular, and Jesper Fast broke a third-period tie with his second goal of the night. The Rangers won for the third straight time, the seventh time in their last eight games, and moved to 10-3 since the All-Star break. Also, the Blueshirts are now within four points of the final playoff spot.

Shesterkin magnificent in goal for the New York Rangers

The Rangers came out flat Saturday night against the Sharks, having outshot the Blueshirts 22-3 in the first period. It was pretty much the work of Shesterkin in the net that allowed them to survive the onslaught and regroup for the win.  In getting the win, Shesterkin became just the fourth goaltender in NHL history to earn nine wins through his first 10 career games. He is also the first NHL goaltender since saves were first tracked in 1955-56 to have four 40 or more save games, as well as four 40 or more save wins, in his first 10 career appearances. This has to be even a bit over the Ranger’s expectations when they brought him up and have tried to juggle the dreaded three goalie scenario.

What will the New York Rangers do at the trade deadline?

There are a couple of different scenarios that the pundits have suggested. The first, and the least likely is that the Rangers do nothing before the trade deadline and deal with the impending salary cap issues in the off-season. This scenario could happen as the Rangers are now in contention for a playoff run, and won’t do anything to upset the team chemistry that seems so strong in recent weeks.

So the next issue is Chris Kreider. If they do re-sign him, then almost every other player on the roster, with the exceptions of Panarin and Mika Zibanejad, would be on the block. Some players with higher price tags like Ryan Strome, Pavel Buchenvich, Brady Skjei, and Tony DeAngelo could be the players who are traded, to help deal with the salary cap implications of re-signing Kreider

If the Blueshirts cannot re-sign Kreider, he will most likely be traded, probably for a nice haul. This is the scenario that would seem to hurt the Rangers playoff chances the most as this would upset the team chemistry quite a bit. This becomes even more critical as the Rangers begin a stretch of four games against opponents in the thick of the playoff race in the Eastern Conference.

Live From Carolina: Did We See Chris Kreider’s Last Road Game With the New York Rangers?

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New York Rangers, Chris Kreider

The New York Rangers survived a minor winter “storm surge” in North Carolina and as well as the Carolina Hurricanes themselves en route to a 5-2 victory Friday night. There were many of us in Ranger Blue present at PNC Arena in Raleigh, who was wondering if we were witnessing Chris Kreider‘s last road game as a New York Ranger. A large number of Blueshirt fans in attendance also witnessed Artemi Panarin and Mika Zibanajed each scoring goals as Igor Shesterkin made 27 saves to lead the Rangers to their seventh straight road win.

Can the New York Rangers sign Chris Kreider to a deal?

On Monday, Pierre LeBrun of TSN reported that the Rangers and Kreider’s representatives were in serious talks to reach an agreement. At this point, it appears that the Rangers are making a strong effort to sign the 28-year-old forward to a deal. If they cannot sign him, he will probably be moved before the 3 PM deadline.

LeBrun also stated that the price for acquiring Kreider would be a first-round pick, a prospect, and some other piece. Some other piece could be a player, it could be a lower-level prospect, it might be a lower-level draft pick, and there might be a conditional pick in there, too, if the team could re-sign Kreider.

One of the projected teams that may have been very interested was the Boston Bruins. However, the need for Kreider became a little less critical for the Bruins when they acquired speedy winger Ondrej Kase from the Anaheim Ducks on Friday. What this could mean is that if Kreider stays, the Bruins might be interested in acquiring a lower cost forward like Pavel Buchnevich.

He may not command the same return as Kreider, but Buchenevich will still undoubtedly come at a steep cost for the Bruins if the Rangers deem him to be available, as he is currently ranked 28th on the TSN Trade Bait List. That price may be easier to stomach for the Bruins, however, given that Buchnevich carries a $3.25 million cap hit this season and next season.

This makes him more than just a rental for a Bruins team very much looking to capitalize on their aging core’s remaining competitive seasons. Kreider is set to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1. The left-wing has spent his entire career with the Rangers after he became the 2009 NHL Entry Draft’s No. 19 overall pick in the first round.

 

The New York Rangers Need to Have an Appropriate Exit Strategy for Henrik Lundqvist

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In a bit of a surprise move, the New York Rangers started Alexandar Georgiev in net for the second night in a row.  Georgiev started Thursday night in Minnesota and was given the start on the back-to-back against Columbus. The conventional wisdom would be to start Henrik Lundqvist and give the young goaltender the night off, but that did not happen. The thinking was that since Georgiev played well against the Wild, and Lundqvist had not played much lately, the Rangers would go with the youngster. Igor Shesterkin had been named as the number one starter but sat out for the second night in a row with an ankle injury. The end result was good as the Rangers defeated the Blue Jackets 3-1, giving them their third straight road victory.  However, a concern will be how the Blueshirts treat their demoted veteran netminder Henrik Lundqvist for the rest of the time that he remains in New York.

Lundqvist deserves a respectful sendoff from the New York Rangers

It is not like Lundqvist has been playing poorly this year. While the 37-year-old veteran may not be as good as he used to be, he is still playing at a solid level. But for the past month-and-a-half, the Rangers have been using a three goalie rotation, with Lundqvist being the odd-man-out. Since Shesterkin’s recall from the AHL in early January, Lundqvist has started just three games for the Rangers, the fewest among the three goalies on the team, with Shesterkin getting the bulk of the playing time.  So, the simple answer is to trade someone, right? Well, that is not as easy as it seems. There had been speculation that the Rangers might trade Georgiev, but a rebuilding team dealing away a 23-year-old goalie doesn’t make much sense unless you are getting a nice haul in return. That has not happened so far. Lundqvist could be traded, but he has a no-movement clause and has stated that he wants to finish his career in New York. He does deserve that consideration but it might mean that he has to be the third goaltender for at least the rest of the season. It could also create a situation where instead of a trade, the Rangers and Lundqvist agree to a buyout of the final year of his contract, making a clean break and allowing Lundqvist to become a free agent. Whatever happens, the Rangers need to finalize things with the class and dignity that Henrik Lundqvist has given to New York for the past 15 years.

New York Rangers Steal a Win in Minnesota as Igor Shesterkin Sits With an Ankle Injury

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New York Rangers

The New York Rangers took a victory from the jaws of defeat Thursday night when they rallied from a 3-1 deficit in the third period to defeat the Minnesota Wild in an overtime shootout.  Pavel Buchnevich brought New York within 3-2 at 11:51 of the third period, and Mika Zibanejad tied the game 3-3 at 18:54. The highlight of the game may have come in the overtime shootout when Artemi Panarin used a flurry of dekes to score on Wild goaltender Alex Stalock, which needed to be reviewed to make sure that Panarin followed shootout rules in scoring.

New York Ranger’s top goaltender sits with an ankle injury

Igor Shesterkin missed his start tonight due to the ankle injury he suffered on Tuesday in Winnipeg. Coach David Quinn described Shesterkin’s situation as “day to day” meaning he could possibly start Friday night in Columbus. Recently, Quinn doubled down on his earlier statement that “keeping people sharp is no longer a high priority of ours,” and unequivocally declared Igor Shesterkin the current No. 1 goalie. The ankle injury kept him from starting tonight but it was unlikely that Shesterkin would have started on back-to-back nights. Quinn didn’t rule him out for the second leg of this road back-to-back Friday night in Columbus. The 24-year-old rookie, who made his NHL debut Jan. 7, is 6-1-0 with a 2.18 goals-against average and .941 save percentage in seven games.

New York Rangers Head Coach Quinn very pleased with the character of the team

After the game, an obviously very pleased Coach David Quinn was quite impressed by the effort of his team in coming back from two goals to earn a hard-fought victory. “We just never quit. We’ve been talking about the belief we have in each other, and it continues to grow throughout the season. It was never more evident than it was tonight.”  Quinn also praised the maturity of his young team when he stated that: “Our team has come a long way. I think before you might have seen some panic and some pressing and some frustration. But I thought for the most part in the third period, we were calm on the bench.”

 

New York Rangers defeat Winnipeg; DeAngelo, Buchnevich join Kreider on Trade List

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New York Rangers

Chris Kreider scored two goals and Igor Shesterkin made 42 saves to lead the New York Rangers past the Winnipeg Jets 4-2. Kreider’s performance solidified him as the number one trade target heading to the Feb 24 trade deadline, but the Rangers continue to negotiate in order to sign the 28-year-old forward.

Buchnevich and DeAngelo join Kreider as possible New York Ranger trades

Pavel Buchenevich and Tony DeAngelo have risen up TSN’s trade bait chart in response to the New York Ranger’s attempt to re-sign Chris Kreider. This is due to the fact that if the Rangers can sign Kreider, they will most likely have to part ways with a combination of Pavel Buchnevich, Tony DeAngelo and/or possibly Ryan Strome in order to stay under the salary cap for the 2020-2021 season.  Alexandar Georgiev dropped out of their list, but the possibility of a trade still exists before the deadline. Kreider still has many potential suitors, even after the Pittsburgh Penguins may have crossed their name off that list by acquiring Minnesota Wild forward Jason Zucker.

Shesterkin removed for concussion check, comes back for the win

Igor Shesterkin recorded 42 saves in the win but had to be removed for a concussion check after colliding with a Winnipeg player. At 8:12 of the first, Shesterkin was crashed into by Andrew Copp after the Jets forward was pushed by Tony DeAngelo. Henrik Lundqvist came in to finish the first period and recorded a save as Shesterkin was cleared and re-entered the game in the second period. Shesterkin is the first rookie goaltender in Ranger history who has made at least 40 saves in two consecutive team games and is the first rookie goaltender who has earned a 40-save win in two consecutive personal appearances. Also, Shesterkin’s 238 career saves are the most by a Rangers goalie in his first seven NHL appearances and the most any goalie has made in his first seven appearances with the Rangers. After the game, head coach David Quinn praised his young netminder by saying From where I sit, it doesn’t matter what league he’s in, it doesn’t matter what building he’s in, it doesn’t matter about anything, he just has a net behind him and he’s going to keep the puck out of it, which is a simple approach and it works.”

In Wake of Victory over L.A., Igor Shesterkin Will Be the Starter in Goal

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New York Rangers, Igor Shesterkin

Many are quite aware that the New York Rangers are one of the youngest teams in the NHL. With that youth, there will be some up and downs like the games they played last weekend. After losing a poorly played game against the Buffalo Sabres Friday night, the Rangers rebounded to defeat the Los Angeles Kings Sunday night by a score of 4-1. Eighteen-year-old Kaapo Kakko scored his first goal in 14 games. Greg McKegg, Artemi Panarin and Tony DeAngelo also scored for New York. Igor Shesterkin picked up the win and recorded 42 saves.

New York Rangers end goalie rotation

After Sunday’s win, head coach David Quinn announced that he will no longer rotate goalies and that Igor Shesterkin will continue to start. Quinn indicated that Shesterkin will continue to start regularly because he’s been the most consistent of the Rangers three goalies. “The best guy is going to continue to play,” Quinn said. “Keeping people sharp is no longer a high priority of ours. It’s going to be winning hockey games and the guy who plays well is going to keep playing.” Shesterkin has won three straight starts and five of his first six in the NHL. He is the first Rangers goalie in history to accomplish that feat. On Monday confirmed that Shesterkin will be in net when the Blueshirts travel to Winnipeg to take on the Jets. This is the first of a three-game road trip that includes stops in Minnesota and Columbus.

The “Consistently Inconsistent” New York Rangers

After Friday’s loss, Quinn noted that his young Rangers sometimes will struggle. “We like to keep things interesting. We’re getting better at it, but we have a hard time playing simple hockey from time to time.” This was an especially difficult loss at the Sabres had been struggling before coming into Friday nights games. Sunday night’s performance was much better in defeating a struggling, but pesky Kings team. Quinn pointed out that in order to win, the young players will need to contribute like they did Sunday night when they got big contributions from  Shesterkin,  Kakko, Filip Chytil and the recently called up, Phillip Di Giuseppe. Quinn summed up the night by saying that “it may have not been pretty hockey, but it was hard played hockey”.

New York Rangers Three Goalie Rotation: Henrik Lundqvist is the Odd Man Out

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New York Rangers, Henrik Lundqvist

When the New York Rangers did not make a deal with Toronto to trade Alexandar Georgiev, it sent out a signal that they are likely to hold on to him and keep three goalies on their active roster. Unless the Rangers make a trade before the February 24 deadline, they will be rotating these goalies, and it looks like the odd man out in this situation will be their longtime netminder, Henrik Lundqvist.

Shesterkin to start for the New York Rangers on Sunday

On Saturday, head coach David Quinn announced that Igor Shesterkin would get the start for Sunday night’s game against the Los Angeles Kings. This signals a pattern that seems to have Georgiev and Shesterkin sharing starts, with Lundqvist likely to serve as the backup. Shesterkin has a 4-1 record since joining the Rangers with a .922 save percentage and a 2.61 goals-against average. He has been everything the Rangers had hoped for when they called him up from Hartford a little over a month ago. Georgiev has played well in the time that he has started, going 12-10-1 this season with a .909 save percentage and 3.12 GAA.

What will happen to Henrik Lundqvist?

It does not appear that the Rangers really want to trade Georgiev, and there does not appear to be many teams that are willing to pay the price the Rangers want. With Toronto off the trade list, the only other team that has a glaring need for his services is the San Jose Sharks, and they will probably not offer an NHL top 6 forward. If the two youngsters rotate starts, this will leave Lundqvist as the backup, getting only an occasional start. Lundqvist is signed through next season at a cap hit of $8.5 million and owns a full no-move clause in his contract, which he does not appear willing to waive. A likely scenario has the Rangers making a clean break with the 37-year-old by buying out his contract in June, clearing $3 million in space for next season, while adding a $1.5 million cap hit for the following year.  The tough thing is that Lundqvist has not played badly this year, posting a 10-11-3 record this season with a .907 save percentage and a 3.13 goals-against average.

Toronto Goalie Injury Fuels New York Ranger Trade Rumors

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New York Rangers, Henrik Lundqvist

The New York Rangers have been no stranger to the NHL trade rumor mill. However, they were thrust further into the spotlight Monday night when Toronto Maple Leafs goalie Fredrick Anderson left the game after colliding with a Florida Panthers player. The Maple Leafs have been one of the main teams linked in trade talks with Rangers backup goalie Alexandar Georgiev.

Anderson out Wednesday, Shesterkin in net for the New York Rangers

On Tuesday, the Maple Leafs announced that Michael Hutchinson will start Wednesday against the Rangers, while Kasimir Kaskisuo will serve as his backup. Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe said Frederik Andersen has been diagnosed with a neck injury and his status is listed as day-to-day. Andersen has been the Leafs’ workhorse in net, starting 42 of their 53 games and posting a 24-9-6 record with .910 save percentage and 2.87 goals-against average. After Monday night’s loss, Hutchinson dropped to 4-8-1 on the season loss with a .886 save percentage and a 3.62 goals-against average. He also allowed three goals on 10 shots in the third period as the Leafs blew a 3-1 lead. It was this lack of production from Hutchinson that has prompted trade talks for a more productive backup such as the Rangers’ Georgiev. Another goaltender the Leafs are interested in the Chicago Blackhawks’ Robin Lehner. The downside to Lehner is that he will be an unrestricted free agent after the season, making the restricted free agent Georgiev a bit more desirable for a long term solution.

In an interesting move related to this, the Rangers announced that Igor Shesterkin would start in goal Wednesday night against the Leafs. Previously, Georgiev has been given the start due to previous success against Toronto. All of this has led to more speculation that a deal may be imminent. Henrik Lundqvist will probably serve as the backup.

And to further add to the trade intrigue, the Toronto Marlies announced that Jeremy Bracco was a scratch on Tuesday night for “personal reasons”. Bracco has been mentioned as a possible trade option for the Maple Leafs. He is considered to be NHL ready but cannot break the talented forward lines of the Maple Leafs. Bracco has posted four goals and 34 points in 44 AHL games this season. During the 2018-19 season, he recorded 22 goals and 79 points in 75 games.

Chris Kreider Injured, Trade News Buzzing as the New York Rangers Beat Detroit Again

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New York Rangers, Chris Kreider

Saturday night was a case of good news and bad news for the New York Rangers. The good news was that the Rangers defeated the Red Wings 1-0, defeating the Wings for the second night in a row. That bad news was that Chris Kreider left the game with an apparent head injury suffered when he took an accidental knee from teammate Mika Zibanajed. 

The injury status of New York Rangers forward Chris Kreider

After the game, head coach David Quinn stated that his Kreider has an upper-body injury, and would not say it was a concussion. Despite this statement, replays clearly show that Zibanajed’s knee hit Kreider’s head squarely. Quinn stated that Kreider was doing well, and his injury will not be long term. It will remain to be seen if Kreider needs to undergo testing for a concussion, as determined by NHL protocols. The other possibility was that the knee to the head caused a bit of a neck injury, similar to what Zibanajed had earlier in the year.

Beach time did not hinder Lundqvist’s game

Quinn decided to start Igor Shesterkin on Friday night over Henrik Lundqvist because “One guy (Shesterkin) has been playing, and the other guy (Lundqvist) has been on the beach for the past nine days.” While that may have been a bit tongue-in-cheek, the rational paid off as Lundqvist recorded a shutout stopping all 33 Red Wing shots.  Lundqvist did note after the game about not playing in a long time when he said, ” It’s been a pretty tough month for me… You try to adjust to it, but in the end, you want to be out there and help the team.”

Trade Rumors Swirl pre-game

Right before the puck dropped, there were two pieces of news that could involve trades for the Rangers. The first was reports out of Calgary that there were going to be three Ranger scouts at the Flames-Oilers game. Both teams have been mentioned as possible trade partners with the Rangers, usually for Chris Kreider. Also, news came out of Toronto that Kasperi Kapanen was a healthy scratch in Saturday night’s game. Kapanen has been mentioned in trades involving Alexandar Georgiev. After the game, the Leafs stated that the scratch was due to “internal accountability.” Kapanen has also been mentioned in trades involving Wild defenseman Matt Dumba.

 

Igor Shesterkin Solid in Hartford, How Long Will the New York Rangers Keep Three Goalies?

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New York Rangers, Igor Shesterkin

In order to keep him sharp, the New York Rangers decided to send goaltender Igor Shesterkin down to their AHL affiliate in Hartford. After playing solid in net for the Wolf Pack in back to back games, the big question is will the Blueshirts continue to carry three goalies when the All-Star break concludes?

Shesterkin Solid in Hartford

Shesterkin continued his domination of AHL competition when he stopped 31 of 32 Bridgeport Sound Tigers Friday night in leading the Wolf Pack to a 4-1 victory. This helped him continue his AHL league-leading goals-against average at 1.89 as well as his .923 save percentage. On Saturday night, Shesterkin had a shaky first period against the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, giving up two first period goals but then was a stone wall after that, allowing Hartford to pull out a 4-2 win. He made 28 saves in this win. Hartford was very happy to get Shesterkin back, even if it was just for a weekend, as Friday’s victory stopped a four-game winless streak for the Eastern Conference-leading Wolf Pack.

The New York Rangers are being patient with their goalies

Shesterkin’s weekend in Hartford just reconfirms that the young goaltender has outgrown the AHL and is fully ready for a long-term look in the NHL. What appears to be in the way of this is Alexandar Georgiev, who has proven to be a reliable NHL netminder. Shesterkin’s weekend also allows the Rangers to be patient with the goaltending situation. In theory, Shesterkin playing this weekend could allow Georgiev and Henrik Lundqvist to play in the back-to-back games and keep all of them sharp. This will buy some time for the Rangers and not force them in panic mode when considering offers. Georgiev appears to be the one who will be traded, and many reports have surfaced that a handful of teams are interested in his services. A less likely scenario would be to keep Shesterkin in Hartford for a while if at least to keep him sharp and continue to tell the rest of the league that they will not just give Georgiev away.