When the Rangers made Igor Shesterkin the highest-paid goaltender in NHL history in 2024, they were months removed from winning the Presidents’ Trophy and had fallen just two wins short of the Stanley Cup Final.
Even though the Rangers haven’t made the playoffs since locking up the foundation of a championship contender nearly two years ago — most recently finishing with their fewest wins in five years, as president Chris Drury began the latest retool of the roster — Shesterkin returned to training camp with a smile, envisioning the season ahead.
“I’m pretty happy,” Shesterkin said following Friday’s practice. “Last season is done. It’s a new page for us. I’m just looking forward. Just want to get back to the playoffs.”
Shesterkin did his part when he was on the ice last season, going 25-19-6 while ranking seventh in the league in goals against average (2.50) and tied for third in save percentage (.912), but the former Vezina Trophy winner was limited to 51 games due to injury.
Following back-to-back disappointing campaigns, the 30-year-old acknowledged the urgency of the season(s) ahead, understanding his prime will only last so much longer.
“In hockey, you have a pretty short window to win something for sure,” Shesterkin said. “Every season is an opportunity for you, and you need to work hard at it and do your best, and we’ll see what happens.
“I feel we can make it.”
The conversations outside the locker room are different.
The Rangers entered training camp with their longest betting odds (+205) to make the playoffs in seven years.
But only five years ago, the Rangers were considered a coin-flip to make the postseason then rode Shesterkin to the Eastern Conference Final.
Ceilings are easier to reach when the floor is so high.
“I think he’s the best goaltender in the game,” Rangers coach Mike Sullivan said. “To have a player of such caliber at such an important position is comforting for a coach. He’s a guy that has shown through his body of work in the league how good he is and how consistently good he is year in and year out.”
Shesterkin cited the additions of defensemen Marcus Pettersson and Sean Durzi, plus the selection of No. 5 pick Alberts Smits — “I hope he will make the team,” Shesterkin said — as reasons for optimism, further transforming a roster that has single-digit players remaining from a team that posted the league’s best record in 2023-24.
“It’s pretty good to have new faces on the team, kind of fresh air for us,” Shesterkin said. “I’m sure they’re going to help us to get back to the playoffs. We just need to trust each other, believe in each other. We have the best fans in the world. They’re going to support us. And I think if we’re in the right [mindset], we’ll make it happen.”
