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New York Rangers’ next generation of goalie prospects must excel

By David Bruce

NEW YORK, NY - OCTOBER 25: One of the Chase Bridges in the renovated Madison Square Garden is seen on October 25, 2013 in New York City. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY - OCTOBER 25: One of the Chase Bridges in the renovated Madison Square Garden is seen on October 25, 2013 in New York City. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images) /
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The New York Rangers current crop of goaltending prospects hasn’t developed well. However, the next wave can and must prove their worth in the coming years.

Goaltending prospect development is somewhat of a crapshoot. A combination of factors, most notably the teachability of skills, make drafting a goalie late in the draft a wise choice. First round goalie prospects also do not have a good track record of success.

Take Henrik Lundqvist for example. Drafted in the same year as first overall pick Rick DiPietro, Lundqvist has become a hall of fame caliber goalie, while DiPietro’s career was riddled with injury and inconsistency.

In recent years, the Rangers have taken a goalie in the late rounds hoping to find Henrik Lundqvist’s future replacement. While prospects MacKenzie Skapski and Brandon Halverson appear to have regressing careers, the next wave of prospects is quite promising.

While the Rangers have quite a few goalie prospects in their system, two stick out in particular: Igor Shestyorkin and Adam Huska. Management needs to be sure to get the most out of these players, and make up for what Skapski and Halverson lacked.

Igor Shestyorkin

The Rangers need to be absolutely certain that they get the most out of Russian prospect Igor Shestyorkin. Possessing a wide range of skills, Shestyorkin is the most likely candidate to replace Henrik Lundqvist in the near future.

With Shestyorkin signed in the KHL until the summer of 2019, the Rangers must keep constant contact with him. Rangers brass very actively contacted Pavel Buchnevich during his KHL tenure, and the same approach must be taken.

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Shestyorkin is incredibly talented, and has put up numbers in a talented professional league that rival many of the league’s goalie prospects. The Rangers cannot let him slip away. When he arrives, a meeting with Benoit Allaire should be priority number one.

Adam Huska

Adam Huska is another talented goaltending prospect in the Rangers system that has a chance of turning pro in the future. While Shestyorkin is the clear cut number one starting goalie prospect, Huska has a real chance to be a home grown backup option.

Huska, a massive success in the USHL, performed admirably in his freshman season on a weak U.Conn team. The Rangers are very good at developing their NCAA prospects, and Huska falls right into that realm.

Huska has a chance to be Cam Talbot 2.0 if the Rangers manage him right. After his sophomore season, depending on his performance, the Rangers should reach out to him to turn pro. With Hartford turning the tide and becoming more competitive, it could be a perfect environment for Huska.

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The Rangers do have others, but none of them project to be as impactful as the aforementioned two. Depending on performance, this is a topic that will need constant revisiting. Management would be very wise to monitor these players as often as they can. Getting the most value out of them as possible is imperative.

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