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It appears the Rangers have received an early Christmas gift.
Igor Shesterkin was activated off injured reserve, the team announced Saturday, after a suspected groin injury sidelined the Rangers’ No. 1 goaltender for eight games. He is now eligible to start in the Rangers’ upcoming matchup with the Canadiens on Wednesday at Madison Square Garden — the last game before a five-day lull in competition for the holiday.
The Rangers went 4-4 without Shesterkin, as backup Alexandar Georgiev had a 1.71 goals-against average in seven appearances.
In a subsequent move, the Rangers sent goalie Keith Kinkaid back down to AHL Hartford. Kinkaid made 29 saves in the Rangers’ 3-2 win over the Coyotes in Arizona this past Wednesday.
The Rangers announced defenseman Patrik Nemeth has entered COVID-19 protocol.
The Rangers have the rest of the weekend off with their next game not scheduled for another three days. The team is scheduled to get back to practice on Monday before Wednesday’s game against Montreal.
To complete the three-game homestand, tied for the team’s longest of the season, the Rangers will welcome the Red Wings to the Garden on Dec. 27.
With their 3-2 shootout loss to the Golden Knights, the Rangers fell to 2-4 on the season in games that have gone to overtime or shootout.
Though the Rangers had one of their best OT performances in Friday’s defeat.
“The overtime was pretty exciting I would say, for the fans,” said goalie Alexandar Georgiev, who made four saves in the extra period on Friday. “Couple great moments, that way, that way, back and forth. For me, just to stay sharp and make the next save. Would’ve been a lot more fun if we won.”
The Rangers outshot the Golden Knights 7-4 in OT, marking their most dominant extra period of the season so far. Unable to convert in overtime, the Rangers then couldn’t find the back of the net during the shootout either as Kaapo Kakko, Mika Zibanejad and Chris Kreider missed on their attempts, dropping the team to 19-7-4.
“The overtime was pretty exciting, going both ways,” coach Gerard Gallant said. “Lots of chances. It was an exciting game.”
The Rangers’ seven shots in overtime counted as a new season high. Having won only a single game in OT this season, in the first meeting with the Maple Leafs four games in, the Rangers have been limited to zero shots on net three times.
The only other game in which the Rangers put up more shots than their opponent in overtime came against the Devils on Nov. 14, when Kreider’s seventh-round shootout tally was ultimately the decider.
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