2024 has not been kind to Igor Shesterkin or the New York Rangers so far. They have lost three in a row for the first time this season and are 1-3-1 to start the year. Many factors have contributed to the team’s poor play as of late, but one of the main reasons as to why they are struggling is the lack of elite goaltending they are getting from Shesterkin. He has had a pretty mediocre season so far and is nowhere near the level he was at when he won the Vezina Trophy two seasons ago. While he is not entirely to blame for his downturn this season, the Rangers need him to find his confidence again if they want to stay on top of the Metropolitan Division for the rest of the season.
Shesterkin’s Recent Stretch of Games Subpar
Shesterkin has started four of the five games the Rangers have played this year and has only one win so far. During these games, he has a save percentage (SV%) of .800 or under three times. The only game where he had a .900 SV% was the win against the Chicago Blackhawks and that is a game the Rangers should have had no problem winning. He has allowed 16 goals in those four games and has a combined goals against average of 4.00 (GAA) with a .828 SV%. If his name wasn’t Shesterkin, he would likely have been sent to minors with number likes these. Unfortunately, numbers like these have become common for Shesterkin this season, as he has been underwhelming for a majority of it.
His overall numbers are very disappointing: a 16-10-0 record, a 2.90 GAA and a .901 SV%. Following last season, Shesterkin told the New York Post “next season is going to be a different Igor” (From “Igor Shesterkin vows a dominant comeback season,” New York Post, May 23, 2023.)
“A different Igor” seems to be an even worse Igor than last season. His confidence seems to be at an all-time low and even though he had a great playoff performance last spring with a 1.96 GAA and a .931 SV%, he hasn’t been able to bring that performance to this regular season.
Poor Defensive Play In Front Of Shesterkin Not Helping Matters
Shesterkin’s poor play this season isn’t all on him. The Rangers defensively have taken a massive step back since the start of December and is not giving their goalies the best chance possible to tun their games around. Adam Fox didn’t look the same after he came back from an injury that kept him out for about a month (but is looking better now.) The same can be said for Ryan Lindgren and K’Andre Miller: Both have taken a step back defensively from what they have done in previous seasons. The Rangers were one of the better defensive teams in the league to start the season and this allowed them to bank points early on. Since the start of December, something has changed in their game that hasn’t gotten fixed and has cost them plenty of games they could have won.
They are 8-8-1 since the start of December and the stretch has been tainted by poor defensive play which in turn has led to poor goaltending from both Shesterkin and Jonathan Quick. Quick hasn’t won any of his last three starts and his stats are starting to come back down along with Shesterkin’s.
Shesterkin Can Turn His Season Around
While he hasn’t had the best season so far, Shesterkin has the ability to turn his game around — he has done in the past and even earlier this season — but just needs to find self-confidence and get better defense in front of him. Prior to this recent stretch, he had won five games in a row and had a .900 SV% or higher in each of those games. He has two separate five-game winning streaks with a .900 SV% or higher. He is capable of turning his season around, he just needs to find the confidence in himself and the team in front of him needs to start playing better defensively.
The Ranges have been blessed with elite goaltending for the past 30 years, from Mike Richter and Henrik Lundqvist and now to Shesterkin. Those two goalies had their bad stretches of games and they were able to overcome them. Now, Shesterkin needs to overcome this bad stretch of games and become the goalie fans know he can be. When he is on his game, there is no goalie better in the world and the Rangers need that Shesterkin to return and help them win games more consistently.
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