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Why Igor Shesterkin deserves more than the record contract offer he turned down
New York Rangers goalie Igor Shesterkin. Danny Wild-Imagn Images

Why Igor Shesterkin deserves more than the record contract offer he turned down

By Alex Wiederspiel  |  Last updated 10/16/24

At the metaphorical poker table of New York Rangers looming contract negotiations, all eyes are on goaltender Igor Shesterkin. 

The Russian netminder is now officially in the final year of a four-year contract signed following two consecutive seasons shortened by COVID-19 where he played his first 47 games of his NHL career. New York signed Shesterkin to a mid-level deal at the time — making him the 11th-highest-paid goaltender in the league. The Rangers bet on Shesterkin's talent. 

One Vezina-winning campaign and two trips to the Eastern Conference Finals later, that bet looks like a winner. If anything, GM Chris Drury probably wishes the deal were longer. 

These are rare moments in the NHL — the possibility of one of the game's true superstars hitting free agency. That's certainly not impossible following the revelation that Shesterkin turned down a record-setting eight-year deal worth $88 million ($11 million average annual value), first reported by ESPN's Kevin Weekes earlier this month.

Shesterkin is one of the game's elite goaltenders — considered by some to be the league's best thanks to his career .921 save percentage, Vezina-winning campaign in 2021-22 and his superb .928 save percentage in the playoffs. If Shesterkin maintains this type of pace into his 30s, he's likely a future Hall of Famer.

Digging deeper, his numbers look even better under the hood. Natural Stat Trick shows an elite three-year sample for Shesterkin among goalies who appeared in at least 10 games since 2021-22:

  • Second in all situations save percentage among all goalies
  • First in all situations goals saved above average among all goalies
  • Second in high-danger save percentage among all goalies

Shesterkin has widely been considered the Rangers' best player through that stretch — even in defeat.  

NHL insider Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet suggested a deal could still get done during the season — noting on a recent episode of the "32 Thoughts" podcast that the hold-up may come down to one of two numbers: cap hit and percentage of cap in comparison to Rangers winger Artemi Panarin. 

The thought is that Shesterkin may want to be paid like the best player on the Rangers, which isn't really in dispute. An extra $642,858 on the Rangers' initial offer per year would get Shesterkin above Panarin's current cap hit — coming out to an eight-year deal worth north of $93 million in total value. 

If Shesterkin wants a percentage of the salary cap equal to Panarin's contract, that number would be around $12.65 million on average, which is 14.29% of the current $88.5 million salary cap. Or, if you go by the projections for next season of a $92.5 million salary cap, the average annual value would be closer to $13.22 million. 

He's the goaltender in one of the biggest markets in North America playing for an Original Six team that's in win-now mode following last season's exit in the Eastern Conference Final.

Shesterkin has the best hand at this table. He's now less than eight months out from being able to choose any place to play for the first time in his career. One way or another, he's going to cash in at a historic level.

It's a question of when and where — not if.

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