Coach Peter Laviolette praised Jonathan Quick for the strong veteran presence that he brings to the locker room.
One of the biggest surprises for the New York Rangers this season has been goaltender Jonathan Quick.
The 38-year-old signed a one-year $925,000 contract with the Rangers this past offseason to be nothing more than the backup goalie.
However, Quick’s impact has gone far beyond just that.
Quick ended up starting 26 games for New York this season. He held an 18-6-2 record, 2.62 goals against average and .911 save percentage.
Prior to this season, goaltender Igor Shesterkin has really had to be superman for this Rangers team, but Quick was able to take a lot of the workload off of Shesterkin.
Coach Peter Laviolette talked about how critical it’s been to have Quick.
“When he says something, people listen,” Laviolette said. “He’s been through it, he’s done it, multiple Stanley Cup winner. When you get someone like that in your locker room it’s important. It could just be a conversation I have with him or he may just talk to somebody else, maybe he says something in-between a period. People stop and they listen because this is a guy who knows exactly what it takes to be successful.”
Quick won two Stanley Cups as the starting goalie of the Los Angeles Kings and helped lead the team to multiple playoff appearances through his stint there.
The legendary goalie has added a strong veteran presence to the locker room. He’s someone through this year’s playoffs that has been able to make an impact without even starting a single game.
Also who knows, if the Rangers are to go on a deep playoff run, they may need Quick at some point in a critical game situation, which is something he would be more than prepared for.