Rangers' Shesterkin To Miss Rest Of Season With Lower-Body Injury

The New York Rangers will have to play the rest of the 2026-27 season with their No. 1 goaltender.

Igor Shesterkin is set to miss the rest of year with a lower-body injury, the team announced Saturday.

The 30-year-old left the Rangers' matchup against the Washington Capitals on Oct. 9 in the second period after an awkward slide in his crease.

He needed assistance off the ice and did not return. He stopped 13 of the 14 shots he faced, exiting a 1-1 tie before the team eventually lost 3-1.

Shesterkin began the season with a 3-1 record, putting together a .927 save percentage and a 1.79 goals-against average across five appearances. He missed a month of hockey last season due to a lower-body injury in what was a lost season for the Rangers.

Last season, the Russian netminder finished seventh in Vezina Trophy voting after posting a 25-19-6 record along with a .912 SP and a 2.50 GAA. 

This news comes after the Rangers placed backup goaltender Joonas Korpisalo on injured reserve on Oct. 1 with a lower-body injury that has him listed as week to week. Korpisalo was acquired from the Boston Bruins on July 1 in exchange for forward Kalle Vaisanen and a 2028 fourth-round pick.

Dylan Garand, who replaced Shesterkin in Friday's game, is next in line to be the starting goaltender for the foreseeable future.

Garand was a fourth-round pick of the Rangers in 2020 and has posted a 3-1-1 record, a .954 SP and a 1.31 GAA  in five games played at the NHL level in his career. The 24-year-old also put together a 22-save shutout against the Detroit Red Wings earlier this season.

In 36 AHL appearances with the Hartford Wolf Pack last season, Garand finished with an .896 SP and a 2.83 GAA.

The Rangers are currently first place in the Metropolitan Division with a 4-2-0 record through their first six games. Last season they finished last in the Metro with a 34-39-9 record.

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