The New York Rangers have re-signed a goaltender, but he’s not Igor Shesterkin. Instead, they have reached an agreement with Adam Huska. They have signed him to an identical one-year, two-way contract as forward Tim Gettinger. It will carry a $750,000 cap hit at the NHL level and pay him $80,000 in the minors.
Huska played 13 games this past season with the Hartford Wolf Pack. He had a 9-4 record to go along with an .890 Save Percentage (SV%) and 2.70 Goals Against Average (GAA). Those are not the best of statistics, but he is still young and has room for growth. He also spent some time in Slovakia this year on a loan and played for HKM Zvolen. He would have a nice .921 SV% there in three games.
Huska was originally drafted in the seventh-round of the 2015 NHL Entry Draft. He officially joined the Rangers’ organization during the end of the 2018-19 NHL season after finishing his collegiate career with the University of Connecticut. In total, he has three seasons of AHL experience and has played 50 games. In them, he has a 21-17-8 record and .892 SV%.
Huska will be back with the Wolf Pack next season.
Huska will continue to play for Hartford next season. It is an easy assumption to make, as the Rangers’ current goalie tandem consists of Shesterkin and Alexandar Georgiev. Even if the Rangers elect to trade Georgiev, which has been rumored, veteran Keith Kinkaid is ahead of Huska on the depth chart. It is unlikely Huska will have many chances in the NHL at all next season. In fact, it would not be surprising if he does not see any action with the big-league club.
This is not meant to put Huska down in the slightest, but it’s just the reality of the situation here. The 24-year-old will continue to work on his craft with the Wolf Pack and should have plenty of opportunities there. It would be awesome to see his statistics improve in the process, too.
Does Huska have an NHL future?
If Huska show signs of true improvement in the AHL, a future in the NHL is not out of the question. He is still fairly young and goaltenders are known to take more time developing. It is unlikely that he will ever blossom into a starting goalie, but him potentially becoming a backup or third-string goaltender like Kinkaid is maybe possible later down the road.
It’s why Ranger fans shouldn’t lose hope with the kid. This is a big season for Huska personally, as if it’s a strong one, he would be taken more seriously. Yet, if he posts a sub .900 SV% again this season, he very well could be let go next summer. From there, his road to the NHL would become even more challenging.
Nonetheless, this is another minor signing by the Rangers, but one worth paying attention to. We will have to see how Huska performs in Hartford this go-around.