Rangers’ Igor Shesterkin Is the Unluckiest Goalie in the NHL

The Rangers were embarrassed by a Calgary Flames team that entered Sunday’s contest having lost eight consecutive games and will likely vie for top spot in next summer's draft lottery.

Captain J.T. Miller admitted that the Rangers “came out flat” in the deflating 5-1 loss at Scotiabank Saddledome.

“You just can’t be okay with coming out flat,” Miller told reporters following the defeat. “We’re in no position to come out flat. (We need to) be in the right mindset. We’re ready to go. We got outplayed again in the first period. It kind of set the tone.”

The Rangers allowed the Flames to get an early edge by not playing with the required intensity and effort. Calgary jumped out to a 2-0 lead. It could have been worse, given the multitude of high-danger chances that the Flames generated throughout the first period.

Rangers Must Fix Broken Defensive Structure to Give Shesterkin a Chance

Head coach Mike Sullivan was installed behind the Rangers’ bench because of his reputation for demanding firm defensive structure and an all-out commitment to a 200-foot game.

Through the first 10 games under Sullivan’s watch, the 3-5-2 Blueshirts have shown some signs of playing cohesive team defense. It just hasn’t been consistent enough.

“It’s getting away from us because we’re getting away from a team game,” Sullivan said after the game. “For the majority of the year, I think we’ve from a defensive standpoint done a pretty good job, as far as being hard to play against. The last couple of outings, not so much, and it’s the same group of guys with the same concept. So, we’ve got to do a better job, all of us as a group, and just making sure we get back to understanding what that game looks like.”

Fans are looking for Sullivan and his team to make a significant leap forward after the Rangers played disorganized and failed to protect the net front throughout the final season of Peter Laviolette’s reign as head coach.

This should be Sullivan’s specialty, though it could take time for him to reprogram the Blueshirts into playing his way and getting them to key in on details.

Right now, the Rangers look too much like last year’s squad. They rank dead last in the Eastern Conference, and they’re often leaving Shesterkin hung out to dry.

If Shesterkin wasn’t an all-world goaltender, the losses would be even more painful and increasingly lopsided.

Following Sunday’s loss, the 29-year-old former Vezina Trophy winner blamed himself.

"It's always hard, but I need to do my job,'' he told Colin Stephenson of Newsday. "I need to give my team (a) chance to win.''

https://x.com/ColinSNewsday/status/1982819322394226938

No, Igor, it’s not your fault. It’s the guys playing in front of you. They need to be better. You shouldn’t need to carry this team on your shoulders every single night.

The Rangers better come out energized and organized when they face the Vancouver Canucks on Tuesday night. They owe that to Shesterkin.