Rangers goalie Igor Shesterkin was pulled in the second period on Thursday night during a game against the Buffalo Sabres after allowing five goals on 12 shots.
The 28-year-old Russian netminder, who entered the game with a 6-2-1 record and a 2.22 goals-against average, conceded a goal just 26 seconds into the game from Sabres captain Rasmus Dahlin.
In the second period, Shesterkin gave up four more goals, three of which came in a span of just 2:12, putting the Sabres up 5-0. Dylan Cozens, Tage Thompson, Jordan Greenway, and Sam Lafferty all scored during that stretch. Shesterkin was replaced by Jonathan Quick with 6:09 left in the period after Lafferty’s goal.
The Sabres went on to win 6-1.
“It really unraveled in the second,” said Rangers defenseman and captain Jacob Trouba. “Our goalie has kept us in games for the first 12, but we’ve got to be better and allow fewer quality chances.”
The Rangers, now 8-3-1 on the season, had been winning largely thanks to Shesterkin’s strong performances.
“This certainly wasn’t our best,” said defenseman Adam Fox. “We left him out to dry. It’s not good enough.”
Shesterkin, who won the Vezina Trophy as the NHL’s top goalie in 2021-22 with a 36-13-4 record and a 2.07 goals-against average, posted 37 wins in 2022-23 and 36 last season, helping the Rangers to the NHL’s best regular-season record.
Shesterkin is in the final year of his four-year, $22.67 million contract, with rumors swirling that he hopes to become the highest-paid goalie in NHL history.
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