Igor Shesterkin Shares Honest Assessment of His Play With NY Rangers

How does New York Rangers goalie Igor Shesterkin believe that he performed this season?

Apr 5, 2026; New York, New York, USA; New York Rangers goalie Igor Shesterkin (31) skates against the Washington Capitals during the second period at Madison Square Garden. / Danny Wild-Imagn Images

The 2025-26 NHL regular season was a difficult one for the New York Rangers, but things could have been much worse had they not had Igor Shesterkin as their goalie.

In what was a disappointing campaign overall, he was a bright spot for the franchise. Shesterkin remains one of the best goaltenders in the NHL, ranking near the top of the league in several categories and helping keep the Rangers in the game any time he was in the crease.

However, when providing a self-assessment of his performance, the star netminder wasn’t very impressed. As shared by Peter Baugh and Vincent Z. Mercogliano of The Athletic (subscription required), Shesterkin believes that he fell short of his peak level of performance.

“I could play way better, for sure,” he said. “I was a little bit shocked when I checked my numbers. I was a little bit upset about it, but still it was top-four, top-five (in save percentage). I cannot say that’s pretty good, but still.”

Igor Shesterkin critical of his performance this season

Apr 11, 2026; Dallas, Texas, USA; New York Rangers goaltender Igor Shesterkin (31) skates back on the ice during the second period against the Dallas Stars at the American Airlines Center. / Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

Shesterkin certainly holds himself to an incredibly high standard if he believes that his 2025-26 stats are below par. His .912 save percentage was tied for third place with Logan Thompson of the Washington Capitals; the only players ahead of him were Scott Wedgewood of the Colorado Avalanche with a .921 and Jesper Wallstedt of the Minnesota Wild with a .915.

His 2.50 goals against average put him seventh in the NHL and was the third lowest of his career in a single year. Shesterkin recorded 23 goals saved above average, which was tied for the third most, along with Andrei Vasilevskiy of the Tampa Bay Lightning.

The only players ahead of him in that category were Wedgewood with 28 and Thompson with 26. Shesterkin’s 85 goals allowed adjusted was tied with Vasilevskiy, with the same cast of characters ahead of him: Wedgewood, Wallstedt and Thompson.

It is not a stretch to say that the New York goaltender was easily one of the top five performers at his position during the 2025-26 campaign. The only real disappointment was his availability, playing in 51 games.

A healthy Igor Shesterkin is great for Rangers

Apr 2, 2026; New York, New York, USA; New York Rangers goaltender Igor Shesterkin (31) makes a save on a shot on goal attempt in the second period against the Montréal Canadiens at Madison Square Garden. / Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images

That is the fewest appearances that he made in an 82-game campaign in his career. It was a major reason why the Rangers struggled so much because Jonathan Quick and Spencer Martin didn’t perform well.

That tandem combined for 28 starts and 31 appearances with a 7-20-2 record; Shesterkin went 25-19-6 while Dylan Garand was 2-0-1 in his three starts.

His performance may not have been up to the lofty standard he set for himself, but he still played at an incredibly high level all season. If he can reach the heights he wants in the 2026-27 season, New York will be right back in the playoff mix.