Rangers coach David Quinn on Igor Shesterkin: He's feeling a lot better, on ice taking some shots
Igor Shesterkin of the Rangers makes a save during the second period against the San Jose Sharks at Madison Square Garden on Saturday, Feb. 22, 2020. Credit: Jim McIsaac
David Quinn had some surprising news in the wake of Sunday’s 5-3 loss to the Flyers at the Garden: Goalie Igor Shesterkin, out with a broken rib suffered in a car accident the previous Sunday, might be back sooner than anticipated.
“He feels a lot better,’’ Quinn said. “He’s been on the ice; he’s taking some shots — nothing high — so he might be back sooner than we envisioned.”
Shesterkin emerged as the Rangers’ No. 1 goalie when he went 9-1 after his Jan. 6 call-up from Hartford.
When the Rangers announced his injury last Monday, they initially said he would be re-evaluated in two weeks.
Quinn stays positive
Quinn had no timetable to offer for how long Chris Kreider, who suffered a broken left foot in Friday’s game against the Flyers, will be out. The loss of the team’s emotional leader is a blow to the Rangers, but Quinn said they can overcome it.
“I think one of the things that they all realize is, when Mika [Zibanejad] went out, I don’t think anybody thought we were going to have any success without Mika,’’ he said. “And we went 8-4-1 and we beat some good teams without Mika. And I think we all feel that we’re a much better hockey team today than we were in November, when we didn’t have Mika.’’
Strome benched
Quinn benched second-line center Ryan Strome after he took two penalties that led to power-play goals and failed to get back on defense on what turned out to be a shorthanded goal.
“Two penalties that he can’t take, and I just didn’t like his game,’’ Quinn said.
NHL honors Zibanejad
Zibanejad was named the NHL’s second star for February after scoring 11 goals (tied for first) and 20 points (second-most in the league). Edmonton’s Leon Draisaitl was named first star and Boston’s David Pastrnak was third star.
Colin Stephenson covers the Rangers for Newsday. He has spent more than two decades covering the NHL and just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.
