The New York Rangers made a number of moves this offseason, and on paper, it looks like they went in the right direction.
But there was one move that had fans scratching their heads, as it seemed like that personnel group was already figured out. We all know that Igor Shesterkin will be the starting goaltender for the foreseeable future, and it looked like Dylan Garand would be the lock as the backup. But then Joonas Korpisalo was traded for, and now we have a bit of a situation on our hands.
A goalie battle will commence for the backup spot, but the pressure is mostly on Shesterkin. Let’s talk about why.
He has some competition behind him
This upcoming training camp, as well as the four preseason games, will dictate the winner of the Garand and Korpisalo battle. It will ultimately be head coach Mike Sullivan’s call whether to go with the youngster or the NHL veteran, and Shesterkin will be impacted by whom gets the spot.
It is safe to say that Shesterkin can basically never get slotted down to that backup role, well, officially. Sullivan can go ahead and ride the hot hand, but this is still no. 31’s team regardless.
Shesterkin has to be better than both of them
This is probably the first time in Shesterkin’s tenure that there is a little bit of pressure for his spot. Korpisalo had some solid moments with Boston, and Garand is a young goaltender who is eager to be the next in line.
It is going to take a lot to move Shesterkin off his post, but the idea is there. It cannot be ignored. Hopefully, with a much better defensive regime in front of him, things can get a little more normal for him.
The 2025-26 season was one of his worst of his career, and it was still a lot better than most other goaltenders in the league. And the defense last season was either hurt, stagnated, or lackluster for most of the season. Not to mention that Shesterkin himself was out for an extended period of time with injury.
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