It's been a tough season for New York Rangers netminder Igor Shesterkin.
It's been a tough season for New York Rangers netminder Igor Shesterkin.
A lack of clutch saves -- a lack of saves altogether -- had played a critical role in the Blueshirts drop off after a strong start.
On Nov. 2, the 28-year-old suffered an undisclosed injury against the Carolina Hurricanes in a 2-1 forcing him out of the lineup for four games.
Upon returning, Shesterkin looked awkward between the pipes, struggling to make his explosive moves, leading to uncharacteristic goals against.
In 18 games, from Nov. 18 through Jan. 13, Shesterkin owned a 3.13 GAA with an .897 SV%. It wasn't all Shesterkin's fault, as the Rangers weren't playing well in front of him, but the former Vezina winner wasn't doing his part to bail his team out.
It wasn't pretty, and the Rangers needed Shesterkin to snap out of it to help right a ship as his club had lost five of six games (1-4-1) since the calendar flipped to 2024.
After watching Jonathan Quick play on Jan. 13 in a 3-2 loss to the Washington Capitals, Shesterkin got the call against the same team 24 hours later for a matinee at Madison Square Garden.
Vintage Shesterkin showed up, stopping 24 of 25 in a 2-1 win to snap the skid.
He was moving well in crease but also doing a significantly better job at tracking pucks, which always helps with controlling rebounds.
"I think it was important for Igor to give us a good game, and I thought he did," Rangers head coach Peter Laviolette said Sunday evening. "I thought we did a better job in front of him by tightening it up defensively.
"We needed to get a win tonight to put that behind us and start to build something."
Shesterking told The New York Post's Larry Brooks this following the win: "Every game it is the same responsibility for me. It is the same focus for me, and it should not matter how the team plays in front of me. I have my job to do."
For Shesterkin and the Rangers, it was about continuing to take steps forward, and they did just that on Tuesday night in their 5-2 win over the Seattle Kraken.
Shesterkin was dominant yet again, as he's back in the New York groove, stopping 29 of 31 for the second straight W.
Here's another example of that elite puck-tracking skill that Shesterkin has found again:
"When we keep players in front of him, it's a better night for our goaltenders," Laviolette said. "He seems dialed in right now, and that's a good thing for us."
Teammate Blake Wheeler had this to say: "You hate to have to rely on him to make the amount of quality saves he made... fortunately for us, that's why he's world class. He made a bunch of big ones for us tonight."
Over these last two starts, Shesterkin has turned aside 53 of 56 for a 1.50 GAA with a .946 SV%. At 5-on-5 play, he's allowed just one goal on 47 shots for a 0.62 GAA with a .979 SV%, per NaturalStatrick.com.
Shesterkin has a talented team in front of him, and he shouldn't have to be perfect every night for the club to win.
That being said, if Shesterkin can continue to take strides in his game and get back to that elite play on a nightly basis, the Rangers will be in great shape as the second half progresses.