Jonathan Quick reacts to Rangers' pregame tribute before last ever start

Monday night featured the final ever start of goalie Jonathan Quick. Ahead of the Rangers' game against the Florida Panthers, Quick announced that this would be his final game before officially retiring at the conclusion of the regular season. With that, it became a must-win game for the Rangers in an effort to send Quick into retirement on top.

Before the game, the Rangers paid tribute to Quick by all donning the goalie's jerseys during pregame warmups. It was a nice touch for the goalie who before being Igor Shesterkin's backup in 2023 was one of the top goalies in the league with the Los Angeles Kings, where he won multiple Stanley Cups.

After the 3-2 loss, Quick spoke to reporters about his final game. When specifically asked about every Rangers player donning his jersey number, Quick said it was a cool moment and joked that he thought they were all wearing Stephane Matteau jerseys.

Rangers and Panthers pay tribute to Jonathan Quick with goalie retiring

"I thought we had Stephane Matteau taking warmups there. That was cool. It was special from those guys," said Quick.

Way before Quick donned the No. 32 for the Rangers, it initially belonged to Matteau. Rangers fans have fond memories of Matteau, considering his double overtime goal in Game 7 of the 1994 Eastern Conference Finals clinched their spot in the Stanley Cup Final. The Rangers went on to win the Stanley Cup in 1994 after defeating the Vancouver Canucks in seven games.

This wasn't the only tribute for Quick. The Panthers wanted to pay their respects to Quick after the game, lining up to shake his hand. Quick initially left the ice, not knowing of the Panthers' plans. He went back onto the ice and shook the hands of all of the Panthers, including goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky.

Quick commented on sharing a moment with Bobrovsky, who entered the league a couple of years after him.

"He's a guy whose been at it a long time and has had an unbelievable career," said Quick. "We had some good battles over the years. It was great to catch up with him."

Quick was seemingly on his way out after an uncharacteristic end to his tenure with the Los Angeles Kings, where he won two Stanley Cup titles and a Conn Smythe Trophy in 2012 for MVP of the playoffs. After a trade to the Columbus Blue Jackets and landing with the Vegas Golden Knights, Quick joined the Rangers in 2023 and proved to be one of the best backup goalies in the league. In his first season, Quick posted a .911 save percentage, a 2.62 goals allowed average, and an 18-6-2 record in 27 games. His numbers did drop off after the year, but he proved to be a reliable option for the Rangers.

Overall, Quick had a 35-30-6 record, a .899 save percentage, and a 2.94 goals allowed average to his credit in three seasons with the Rangers (76 games).

The Rangers will enter the offseason with Shesterkin and Dylan Garand as their likely goaltending duo. Quick joins a recent list of goaltenders who panned out as backups with the Rangers, and the team wanted to pay their respects to him.

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