We take a break from the Jack Eichel speculation, spurred by tweets from Steve Valiqueette and Rick Carpinello, to focus on actual news. New York officially came to terms on a contract with Igor Sheshterkin today. While the $ were in the hoped for range, the years are what might be a surprise.
NYET SZN pic.twitter.com/wThmqJyDdK
— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) August 9, 2021
Hearing Igor Shesterkin's new deal with #NYR is 4 years, $22.666 million. AAV of $5.65 million.
— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) August 9, 2021
That is the most money ever handed out - in AAV and total dollars - to an NHL goaltender on his second contract.
This is what I wrote in my last blog:
As Vince Mercogliano reports, Igor and the Blueshirts were getting close on a new contract, with a person close to the situation expecting an average annual value in the range of $5.75 million to $6 million, which will eat up a significant chunk of the approximately $13.6 million in room remaining under the cap. A long-term deal - likely 5-6 years - keeps him in the fold, avoiding a situation where the concern would be that he heads elsewhere, since Shesterkin is two years away from unrestricted free agency.
They firmly believe that Shesterkin is a high-caliber starting goalie, as do many scouts who have followed him since his dominant days in the KHL. He's 26-16-3 across his first two NHL seasons with a 2.59 goals against average and a .921 save percentage, which are very respectable numbers. But a deeper dive paints an even rosier pictureAccording to Clear Sight Analytics, Shesterkin has the best differential (1.7%) between his expected SV% and actual SV% among goalies who have faced at least 500 chances against in the past two seasons. He ranks ahead of the previous two Vezina Trophy winners, Marc-Andre Fleury and Connor Hellebuyck, who are third and fourth, respectively, with Tuukka Rask second.
Simply put, the 6-foot-2 Russian has shown an impressive knack for making difficult saves when opponents generate quality scoring chances. He's had considerable success against one-timers, rebounds, shots from the slot, odd-man rushes and other high-danger situations
Of course, the counter-argument is that Shesterkin still has a lot to prove. His sample size is relatively small and he's never played more than 35 games in an NHL season. A car accident in early 2020 and a groin strain in March 2021 have limited his ice time, but he returned from the latter in late March, after missing 10 games, and started 16 of the next 20 games and 31 of 56 overall. That represented the heaviest workload of his young career and helped convince the Rangers that he can handle being their undisputed No. 1.
As Seravalli noted, the contract is the most money ever handed out - in AAV and total dollars - to an NHL goaltender on his second contract. The four years takes up two of Igor's possible UFA seasons. I really thought New York would sign him to a 5-6 year deal. If Shesterkin plays like many of us believe he can, he will become a UFA at 29, setting him up for a huge score with the cap expected to rise by then.
Great job by Drury keeping the dollars under $6 million. I just wish the deal had been for a year or two longer. But Drury has also covered the downside risk to an extent, so if the Czar does not pan out as we all hope or expect he will, New York is not tied down to an exceedingly long-term deal.
We now get back to your "spidey" sense and possible Zib inclusion in an Eichel deal portion of our program.
With Shesterkin signed for $5.65M per @frank_seravalli, #NYR have $10.5M Cap Space with 22 Players on Projected Roster (14F/6D/2G).
— PuckPedia (@PuckPedia) August 9, 2021
RFA: Hajekhttps://t.co/00zTCjvTRm