As chants of Igor rained down Monday night at Madison Square Garden, the future highest paid goaltender in hockey probably earned a few more dollars to his eventual payday. The New York Rangers’ ace, Igor Shesterkin, robbed all comers against the Detroit Red Wings. Even on plays whistled dead, he wouldn’t give up a freebie.
In the end, the Red Wings (1-2-0) couldn’t get more than a single goal past Shesterkin, which made each and every one of the four they gave up too many. That’s the way it goes against such an elite netminder, but pinning all the credit to a hot goalie ignores Detroit’s own misfires throughout the 4-1 loss.
Those miscues were abundant. The Red Wings gave up five power plays against a unit that ranked third in the NHL last season with most of its key pieces returning. New York (2-0-1) scored once on those five tries, but they cashed in by exploiting another Detroit weakness: faceoffs. The Rangers dominated the dot to a 58% success rate, leading directly to two goals — one apiece for Chris Kreider and Reilly Smith — scored off faceoff plays.
Mandatory Credit: Dennis Schneidler-Imagn Images
Even when Detroit got going in the right direction, Shesterkin proved largely unflappable. Dylan Larkin only beat him on a first period buzzer-beater, assisted by good passing by Justin Holl and Patrick Kane. But on the 31 other shots the Red Wings took, the Russian export put up a wall. He made remarkable saves on J.T. Compher twice on the door step, saving all but one of the 11 medium- and high-danger shot attempts he faced. Nothing was coming for cheap against Shesterkin; even when Alex DeBrincat followed up on a puck batted down by Lucas Raymond’s high stick, Shesterkin still robbed the Red Wing sniper with a glove save as the referee’s whistle sounded.
Detroit knew Shesterkin would be a tough nut to crack, but not an impossible one. Just a couple nights ago, Utah scored six goals on him in an overtime win. Maybe that had certain motivating effects on Shesterkin, but it also proved that he is, in fact, human. He is, in fact, fallible. But that didn’t matter because Detroit failed to play well enough to earn a win.
Unforced penalties ruined the Red Wings’ momentum, including a hook by Austin Watson in the first period, a high-sticking call on Justin Holl that led to Chris Kreider’s game-winning power play goal, and especially a delay of game by goaltender Alex Lyon for a net knocked off its moorings (Lyon, in his first start of the season, saved 24 out of 27 shots). As these sorts of errors put the Rangers in the driver’s seat, the Red Wings couldn’t find a groove to try and score again.
It’s these same Rangers that come to Detroit on Thursday, a night the Red Wings will hope goes much better than their trip to New York City. If Shesterkin is in net, it’s safe to say they’ll have another challenge on their hands.
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