When the King wears a hat, who wears the mask for the New York Rangers
The New York Rangers are a team that has been blessed with superb goaltending for most of the franchise’s existence. There have been 86 men to strap on the pads and patrol the crease for the Broadway Blueshirts, including eight Hall of Famers and four Stanley Cup winners. We know the names and numbers in the rafters: Ed Giacomin #1, Mike Richter #35, soon to be joined by Henrik Lundqvist #30.
But how much do we know about the men in the mask behind the man in the mask? Among others, Giacomin had Gilles Villemure, Vanbiesbrouck had Glen Hanlon, Richter had Glenn Healy. Who has Lundqvist had to back him up? Would it surprise you to know that before Shesterkin won the starting job, 14 different goalies not named Lundqvist have patrolled the crease over the last 15 years
Lundqvist debuted for the New York Rangers on October 12, 2005 at Madison Square Garden. He quickly secured himself as the number one goalie, appearing in 53 of the team’s games his rookie year. His reign would last until this year, the longest streak as number one for the franchise. He has appeared in 889 games for the team, equal to 74.9% of the 1,184 games played since the start of the 2005-06 season.
No goalie starts every game and eventually, every goalie gets the hook. Every starter needs a capable backup to be successful, though, some are more capable than others.
So, who has worn the mask when Lundqvist wore the hat?
#40 Alexandar Georgiev
Georgiev signed as an undrafted free agent in 2017. He played in 37 games for the Hartford Wolfpack during the 2017-18 season. He was called up to the Rangers to replace Ondrej Pavelec, making his NHL debut on February 22, 2018. He performed admirably well in his 10 appearances with the Rangers while facing more than 35 shots seven times, securing his spot on the team.
Georgiev would make 77 appearances over parts of three seasons, the most of any backup in the cap era. He would be rewarded with more and more playing time, eventually being a tandem partner with Lundqvist at the start of the 2019-20 season. This dynamic would continue until the call up of Igor Shesterkin created the ‘three headed goalie monster’ in January.
This season Georgiev would go on to appear in (34), start (32) and win (17) games, more than any of the Rangers three goalies. This marked the first time in 15 years Lundqvist’s name was not at the top of the list. A sign of the changing times.
An arbitration eligible restricted free agent, Georgiev will need a new contract to stay with the Rangers.