Rangers goaltender Igor Shesterkin honored to be named an All-Star
Igor Shesterkin of the Rangers looks on during the second period against Chicago at Madison Square Garden on Thursday. Credit: Jim McIsaac
MONTREAL — Igor Shesterkin got the night off Saturday, serving as backup to Jonathan Quick in the Rangers’ game against the Montreal Canadiens at the Bell Centre. But at the morning skate, the goaltender spoke briefly about his being named Thursday as the Blueshirts’ representative for the NHL All Star Weekend Feb. 1-3.
“Like I said before, it's a great honor,’’ said Shesterkin, who will be going to his second straight All-Star Weekend. “But ‘Bread’ [Artemi Panarin] more deserved it.’’
Panarin, who leads the Rangers in scoring and is on pace to shatter his career highs in goals and points, explained in a video on the team’s social media that he is unable to attend All-Star Weekend because his wife is pregnant and expecting their second child.
As for Shesterkin, who was tied for fifth among NHL goalies with 16 wins, and who has a goals-against average of 2.75 and a save percentage of .908, he said he enjoyed participating in the All-Star activities last season in Florida. He enjoyed it, he said, because he liked the location. Asked about going to Toronto this year, he said he will “take a couple of coats, because it’s colder.’’
The NHL on Thursday named the first 32 players (one from each team) chosen for the All-Star rosters, and fan voting began for the remaining 12 players who will be added to fill out the rosters for each of the league’s four divisions. Shesterkin is the only goaltender chosen so far for the Eastern Conference. The Western Conference has three goaltenders (Dallas’ Jake Oettinger, Los Angeles’ Cam Talbot and Winnipeg’s Connor Hellebuyck).
Kakko on trip
Injured forward Kaapo Kakko, who skated with the team Thursday for the first time since he suffered an injury to his left leg Nov. 27, made the trip with the team and took part in Saturday’s morning skate as well.
Kakko, a right wing, did more in this morning skate than he did on Thursday, including filling in as a defenseman on the fourth pair, alongside seventh defenseman Zac Jones, during scrimmage walk-throughs.
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.
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