Joonas Korpisalo didn’t dress up his first Rangers start in Seattle. He didn’t need to.
After helping New York to a 4-3 win over the Kraken on Saturday night, the veteran goalie kept it simple: “I felt OK, there’s still some stuff to clean up, and it’s obviously going to get better as we go along,” Korpisalo said postgame.
That sounds about right for where the Rangers are with him, too. Korpisalo made 25 saves in his debut, and while the final score got a little messy after New York built a 4-0 lead, the result still gave the Rangers their third straight victory.
His first appearance in blue came more than a month later than expected. A foot infection kept him out after he backed up Igor Shesterkin on opening night against his former team, the Boston Bruins. Then Shesterkin suffered a season-ending knee injury, Dylan Garand was pushed into the No. 2 role and wound up playing 12 straight games - 10 starts and two in relief - while Rangers fans waited for Korpisalo to finally get healthy.
That wait made the whole thing feel a little ironic. Plenty of fans weren’t thrilled when the Rangers traded for the 32-year-old goalie over the summer, with Garand seen by many as the preferred backup behind Shesterkin.
But with Shesterkin out for the year, the picture has changed. New York now needs a reliable partner in net, and Korpisalo gives the team that.
“You know what it takes, right? So, all that time I was working out, making sure I’m as ready as possible to go when it’s my time to play,” Korpisalo said.
The Rangers don’t have Shesterkin back, and nobody is pretending they do. But Korpisalo’s return matters because it steadies the position, gives the club two NHL options each night, and should take some pressure off Garand.
Elsewhere in the organization, Hartford got a moment worth remembering when Drew Fortescue scored his first professional goal - an overtime winner for the Wolf Pack on Saturday.
The Rangers also recalled defenseman Marc Del Gaizo from AHL Hartford on Sunday, and John Kreiser broke down what that means for the team as it heads into the final three games of a four-game road trip through the Northwest.
Around the league, New Jersey’s decision not to start Connor Hellebuyck on Tuesday in Winnipeg drew attention, with James Nichols digging into why the Devils made the call before facing the Jets and their angry fan base. TSN noted that the Devils’ explanation was a little hard to swallow, especially the line about creating a “reduction in our expected win probability.”
Hellebuyck and the Devils then kept rolling anyway, blanking the Maple Leafs 4-0 in Toronto. The game brought more injury trouble for Toronto, with former Rangers forward Jack Roslovic out with an unspecified injury and Colton Sissons leaving early with a lower-body injury.
There was also a wild one in Winnipeg, where the Jets erased a three-goal third-period deficit and beat the Lightning 4-3 on Mark Scheifele’s goal with 1.6 seconds left. Brayden Point exited that game with an undisclosed injury and did not return.
In Ottawa, Linus Ullmark appears close to coming back after missing eight games with a lower-body injury, following the Senators’ decision to assign goalie Jonas Johansson to the minors on Sunday.
And in Anaheim, Cutter Gauthier kept piling up goals. He scored his third hat trick in a five-game span during the Ducks’ 5-2 win over the Penguins, becoming just the seventh player in the modern NHL era since 1943-44 to do it.
In Other News...
Rangers Defensive Shuffle Suddenly Feels Bigger Than One Call-Up
The Rangers blue line got a little more complicated in the lead-up to their game against the Edmonton Oilers, with Marc Del Gaizo recalled from Hartford and Scott Morrow added to the lineup as the club practiced without much clarity on the full picture. It was the kind of morning that can make a routine roster move feel like more than a routine roster move, especially when the team is trying to sort through its defensive depth on short notice.
The timing matters because the recall came after an injury situation opened the door, and Sean Durzis move to injured reserve only added to the sense that the Rangers are managing more than one issue at once. The team did not offer any further injury updates after practice, leaving the immediate focus on how the defense will hold up while the group waits for a clearer read on who is available and for how long. [Read more 🡒]
Rangers Recall Puts Unexpected Pressure On Their Blue Line Plans
The Rangers blue line picture got a little murkier with the recall of Marc Del Gaizo from Hartford, a move that comes as injuries have thinned the group and forced the organization to look deeper down the depth chart. Del Gaizo has been a steady presence for the Wolf Pack, where he serves as captain and leads the defensemen in points, and he has already made an impression on the big club with his physical, smart two-way game.
For a team trying to stabilize its back end, the timing matters. The Rangers are now weighing how quickly to fold Del Gaizo into the mix, and the next stretch of games could give them a chance to do it. With Edmonton looming, the recall is more than just a paper move now, it is a test of whether the organization is ready to lean on a player who has earned the attention but not yet a clear role. [Read more 🡒]
Rangers Win Still Exposed A Problem Fans Cant Ignore
The Rangers got the result they needed against Seattle, but the way it unfolded left plenty to chew on. A 4-3 win is the kind of finish that usually feels satisfying in the standings, yet giving up three goals in the third period turned a comfortable night into a test of nerve, with the Kraken suddenly finding life and forcing New York to hang on.
Tye Kartye helped fuel Seattles push with a power-play goal, while Pavel Dorofeyev added another marker that showed why his scoring touch keeps drawing attention. Joonas Korpisalo was the difference in the closing stretch, turning aside a steady stream of shots as the Rangers tried to survive the surge, and the final scoreline only underscored how much work still remains if they want these games to feel secure. [Read more 🡒]