Shesterkin in goal for the biggest game in years

The major question facing David Quinn and the New York Rangers was who will be in goal tonight.  They put all speculation to rest by announcing that it would be Igor Shesterkin, looking to get his first career win against the Islanders.

In picking Shesterkin, David Quinn is going with his number one goalie and bypassing Alexandar Georgiev who has made a career out of the beating the Islanders.   Here are the career numbers for the two netminders against the Isles:

Georgiev:        7-2-0   1.70 GAA        .944 Sv%
Shesterkin:     0-3-1   3.75 GAA        .878 Sv%.

It’s hard to argue with Quinn’s decision.  Shesterkin has been playing well and he was the number one star of the game on Tuesday.   He saved the Rangers in the first period when they were overwhelmed by the Sabres.   Quinn has made it clear that he will ride the hot hand and Shesterkin fits the bill.

The second guessing will only begin is Shesterkin gives up a  bad goal, especially if it is early in the game.  The Islanders offense is on life support and if Shesterkin can shut the door, the Rangers have a good chance to win.   Then again, they have to play better in front of their goalie than they did in their last 6-1 loss to the Isles, with Shesterkin in net.

The only other lineup news is that Jacob Trouba is still out, though getting better.  He was injured in that last game with the Islanders when he took a massive hit from Matt Martin.  In a curious note, Chris Kreider will be a game time decision with no word on what his ailment is.

We may see Ilya Sorokin in net for the Islanders for the third straight start. Semyon Varlamov missed the last game due to “soreness.”  If it is Sorokin, that adds more drama to the game as Shesterkin and Sorokin were KHL rivals and teammates on Russian national teams.   They have faced off once this season with Sorokin winning in overtime, 3-2.

Game time is 7pm as the Rangers go in only five points behind the Isles who have one game in hand.  We’ll know if Quinn made the right call in just a few hours.