For the Rangers, the first week-plus of the season has already taken a sharp turn. What began with a strong start and a comfortable feeling around Madison Square Garden suddenly hit a wall when Igor Shesterkin went down with a season-ending injury last Friday in Washington.
New York has still managed to bank six wins in its first nine games, but Thursday night in Newark was a reminder of how much harder the road gets without its franchise goaltender. The Rangers were crushed 7-1 by the Devils, and their next stretch will be defined by how they respond without the man who had been the centerpiece in net.
Coach Mike Sullivan said the team’s approach is built around more than one player, even one as important as Shesterkin.
“We’re trying to build a certain identity in how we’re going to play, a style of play,” Sullivan said. “And then, inside of that, every player has a role, making a contribution to that identity to build what we would consider Rangers hockey and what it looks like when we’re at our best.”
That identity was nowhere to be found against New Jersey. J.T.
Miller was sharp through the opening 19 minutes, but his turnover late in the first period helped trigger the kind of collapse the Rangers could not afford. Dylan Garand, the unlikely next man up in goal, was pulled after giving up four goals on 13 shots.
Garand wasn’t even expected to be part of the NHL picture this soon. He finished training camp third on the organizational depth chart and remained with the club only after clearing waivers before opening night.
Still, he had been excellent in his first three appearances before the Devils game, posting a league-best 1.15 goals-against average and .951 save percentage. For now, he is the goaltender they’re leaning on.
“G knows we’re going to need him here a lot, and he’s a pretty mentally tough guy," No. 1 defenseman Adam Fox said. “I know he can bounce back.
Just kind of said to him forget about it. He knows how important he is to us as a team and what we’re trying to do.”
The big picture has not changed for New York: get back to the playoffs after missing the past two seasons, following the run to the 2024 Eastern Conference final. Shesterkin’s injury just made that climb steeper.
“That’s a tough blow for our group,” Sullivan said. "But it doesn’t change what the goal is every day, and I think our guys have done a real good job at just keeping the focus where it needs to be and controlling what we can.”
Sullivan said the leadership group has kept the room from spiraling, and that message has carried even to the youngest player on the roster. Alberts Smits, the 18-year-old from Latvia who was drafted fifth and made the team out of camp, brushed off the setback as part of the sport.
"Injuries are going to happen,” said Alberts Smits, the 18-year-old from Latvia who was the fifth pick in the draft and made the team out of camp. "I wish all the best for him and for him to recover as fast as he can.
But that’s just sports. There’s going to be injuries.
We’ve just got to go through them, and we can’t stop right now when something like that happens.”
Even with Shesterkin out, the Rangers still have production up front. Alexis Lafrenière has seven goals, Fox has nine assists and Mika Zibanejad has eight points. But the clearest belief inside the room is that New York’s path forward starts with structure and defense.
“It’s winning hockey, so if you want to win games, you’re going to give yourself a better chance most nights if you don’t give the other team easy offense," Miller said. "We get better as the games go on.
There’s a commitment 200 feet. It’s a contagious feeling around here coming together as a team, so it’s a nice feeling.”
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