Tonight might end up being a night that you look back on 10 years from now and ask yourself where were you when the Prince (not the Czar) played in his first NHL game. Because of his play in the AHL, Igor Shesterkin was called up to the show and will face the Colorado Avalanche. Who else is excited?
We’ve known about Shesterkin for years now as he was the Rangers 4th round pick in 2014. Over the last few years his name has been brought up to be the heir of king Henriks throne. His numbers over the past few years have been numbers out of a video game.
Once Igor was done dominating the KHL he moved on to the AHL where, again, he dominated.
These numbers were good enough to get him named to the AHL all star team. Only a few days later he was called up and now the Rangers will go with a three goalie tandem the rest of the year barring a trade, injury, or poor performance.
We’ve all known this moment was coming but now that it is here it is bittersweet. Yes, Hank has not had the same work load as in years past and yes Georgiev has made a case for being the one in waiting. Having said that, it’s still difficult to see Hank slowly being faded out of the picture. The New York Rangers have absolutely wasted Henrik Lundqvists prime and it is a tragedy, it is. We’ve had the blessing to watch the King man the pipes for the last however many years and now it’s time to watch the kids do what he was once able to do. I keep my fingers crossed that they go on a super run next year but what are the chances that actually happens?
So as you watch tonight really take it in. We’ve seen Henrik break all of these records and with that clips of him as a young kid in absolute hideous pads from years ago.
Will we see the same type of videos years down the road with Igor? With Georgey? Probably not, as we were blessed with some of the best goaltending in the history of the NHL. However, there is a chance, and for that you need to be thankful for what we had and what is yet to come. Where were you the night Igor made his first start? A question that will be answered later tonight and perhaps many years from now.
The Morning Skate 