New York Rangers goaltender Igor Shesterkin will miss the rest of the season with a lower-body injury, the team announced on Saturday.
Shesterkin suffered an apparent leg injury in the Rangers’ loss to the Washington Capitals on Friday night when his right leg accidentally slipped on a bicycle while rushing to return. Shesterkin immediately fell to the ice, and needed help to get down the tunnel.
Before that loss, the Rangers had gone 4-1-0 in a terrible start, and Shesterkin was a force to be reckoned with in that success. In five appearances, Shesterkin has a 3.90 goals against average with a .900 save percentage, according to Natural Stat Trick.
A 2022 Vezina Trophy winner, Shesterkin put up sparkling numbers when he entered the NHL in 2019-20. In 330 games, Shesterkin boasts a .917 save percentage, a 2.51 GAA and 22 shutouts. Over the last three full seasons from 2023-26, Shesterkin is third in goals against average with 45.4. Only Connor Hellebuyck and Andrei Vasilevskiy were better in that category.
Shesterkin was a big reason why the Rangers felt they could bounce back from the 2025-26 offensive season, and losing their star goaltender puts a big dent in the team’s playoff hopes. It doesn’t help that backup goalie Joonas Korpisalo is also injured.
Dylan Garand replaced Shesterkin on Friday night, and Martin Spencer will be recalled from the AHL after recovering from his injury. With the Rangers playing well this morning, it wouldn’t be a shock to see them explore better replacement options for Shesterkin.
Where to turn the story into a goal?
New York will not be able to replace the impact of Shesterkin, who is one of the five best goalies in the world. However, the team may be able to match the current target, which is a low enough bar to clear.
First, the unsigned veterans still on the open market in Peter Mrazek and Jacob Reimer. Neither was a great one last season — hence their availability at the moment — and Reimer and Mrazek could provide a level of stability in the lineup that the Rangers simply don’t have right now.
New York could also explore trade possibilities, and Minnesota Wild netminder Filip Gustavsson could be the solution there. Jesper Wallstedt is going to grow in Minnesota, which makes Gustavsson more of a luxury. Could Wilde send Gustavsson to New York in exchange for some draft capital to acquire a center?
The one snag in Gustavsson’s power is that he has contracted a lot. Gustavsson is in the first year of a deal that pays him $6.8 million over the next five seasons. That’s a big role for the player who will be the backup when Shesterkin returns.
Obviously, Connor Hellebuyck has been traded for months now, but that trade didn’t suit the Rangers. Hellebuyck is expensive a lot of the time, and New York would have $20 million tied up in goaltenders if they were to move, not to mention the astronomical acquisition cost.
However, if you’ll allow me to get creative here, it’s no secret that Hellebuyck was courted by the Florida Panthers. What if the Panthers traded Jacob Markstrom – acquired in the offseason – to the Rangers to make room for Hellebuyck?
Markstrom doesn’t have a 20-team roster or a trade, so the question is whether New York would be one of his 11 teams. Florida flipping Markstrom so quickly seems like a long shot, but the team has taken plenty of great leaders in recent history.