Prospect Info: 2014 NHL Draft / Pick #118 - Igor Shestyorkin (G) - Part II

[Kovalev27]

Next year Lundqvist will turn 38 and be in the final 2 years of his contract...he may not want to accept it but I think he's going to definitely get pushed for the starting spot and could easily lose it. Time doesn't care how much work you put in or how good you used to be. Hell that could even happen this year...as mentioned it could certainly be interesting to see how Lundqvist reacts if despite all his preparation and efforts he ends up having another poor year and just can't play up to the level he expects of himself.

The Rangers are lucky to have a great prospect in the pipeline and a young goalie who has looked pretty good in a backup role that might also be good enough to start in the NHL. I think everyone who knew a bit about Lundqvist thought that he probably would be the starter sooner rather than later when he came over to the NHL, but he definitely made it look easy when he took over for Weekes.

Man...so long ago. Then he had trouble in the playoffs, the Rangers lost to the Devils, and we found out he was playing injured and suffering headaches from teeth grinding or some weird ****

I personally feel that georgiev is a better goalie than lundqvist is right now I do. I have more confidence in him than hank.

 

[Levitate]

I personally feel that georgiev is a better goalie than lundqvist is right now I do. I have more confidence in him than hank.

Maybe. I like what I've seen from Georgiev but he still doesn't look starter ready to me yet. We'll see how it goes this season.

Honetly kind of the same with Lundqvist though...does he recapture some of his form or is he really in a tailspin at this point and the poor defensive strategy from previous years wasn't the only factor?

 

[Kovalev27]

theres just too many holes in his game now. he's not as quick as he used to be so he opens up and guesses and gets beat on too many easy shots. he wants to play deep and he's to small and slow to play that anymore. when he plays aggressively he loses his net and guesses and isn't quick enough to move laterally as he used to be. he can do it for short stretches but that's more him getting hot and then coming back to earth. he's not a top 20 goalie anymore.

he was always super unique in his ability to play so deep and have the craziest reflexes I've ever seen. but those days are over. Now he's more in his own head than anything and it shows. he doesn't have the patience he once had because he can't anymore he's got to be more aggressive or he'll get burned on easy goals. and that's been his MO for a couple years now.

he's also shown the last couple years that he can't make saves to start games. he can't get ready fast enough to be at game speed to start games and he's consistently put his team in holes early. there's always an excuse but its a really really bad habit that he can't seem to break. I've seen nothing to the contrary in the preseason to tell me this year will be any different for him other than our Defense will be built around protecting him so hopefully that works. but I have zero doubt he will be sharing the net with either georgiev or shesterkin probably 50/50 by next season.

 

[Edge]

Am the only one who thought Lundqvist's mental game, even at his peak, could sometimes be a little spotty?

 

[The Crypto Guy]

Am the only one who thought Lundqvist's mental game, even at his peak, could sometimes be a little spotty?

He was one of the most consistent goalies in his prime in the NHL, if not the most consistent. So I disagree. As he's as gotten older I've seen his mental game get worse.

 

[Edge]

He was one of the most consistent goalies in his prime in the NHL, if not the most consistent. So I disagree. As he's as gotten older I've seen his mental game get worse.

I'm not talking about consistency. I'm talking about the frequency of softer goals, despite the talent, or that he really only had that start to finish, best in the league season twice.

For as great as he's been, there were more than a few noticeable stretches where hes' been outplayed by inferior goalies and had to wake up and refocus a bit.

There was always a seen of fragility there.

 

[The Crypto Guy]

I'm not talking about consistency. I'm talking about the frequency of softer goals, despite the talent, or that he really only had that start to finish, best in the league season twice.

For as great as he's been, there were more than a few noticeable stretches where hes' been outplayed by inferior goalies and had to wake up and refocus a bit.

There was always a seen of fragility there.

I guess but they were pretty infrequent, far less frequent than the majority of goalies in the league. Every goalie has a stretch of meh games.

I think we were just spoiled because he played absolutely out of his mind 90% of the time, so when he played "average" it stood out.

 

[Kovalev27]

Am the only one who thought Lundqvist's mental game, even at his peak, could sometimes be a little spotty?

Agree completely

 

[GeorgeKaplan]

I'm not talking about consistency. I'm talking about the frequency of softer goals, despite the talent, or that he really only had that start to finish, best in the league season twice.

For as great as he's been, there were more than a few noticeable stretches where hes' been outplayed by inferior goalies and had to wake up and refocus a bit.

There was always a seen of fragility there.

Is it just because he’s been under such a microscope for us?

 

[Edge]

Is it just because he’s been under such a microscope for us?

I've entertained that thought as well, and part of me wonders if it's also the internet age where everything is live for the world to see and dissect.

There are other parts of me that cringe with the multiple outbursts in net, or the fact that at various times his backups looked a lot closer to his level than they should've.

I've thought about certain comments over the years, even the throwaway ones, or that we could almost count on a December swoon or a stretch where his positioning was pretty average. It just always seemed so strange from a guy who, when he was on, was the best of the best.

In some ways it almost seemed somewhat beneath him and surprising.

I've never quite been able to put my finger on it, and I don't really have a good answer for you.

 

[GeorgeKaplan]

I've entertained that thought as well, and part of me wonders if it's also the internet age where everything is live for the world to see and dissect.

There are other parts of me that cringe with the multiple outbursts in net, or the fact that at various times his backups looked a lot closer to his level than they should've.

I've thought about certain comments over the years, even the throwaway ones, or that we could almost count on a December swoon or a stretch where his positioning was pretty average. It just always seemed so strange from a guy who, when he was on, was the best of the best.

In some ways it almost seemed somewhat beneath him and surprising.

I've never quite been able to put my finger on it, and I don't really have a good answer for you.

I don’t mean to insinuate that he’s perfect, I just mean it to be that low stretches are normal for every player in the league, it’s a long season for everyone and that’ll mean that eventually at times real life stuff will be at the front of someone’s mind rather than playing a game.

 

[SnowblindNYR]

Am the only one who thought Lundqvist's mental game, even at his peak, could sometimes be a little spotty?

I thought that this was especially apparent in some playoff series. For example, he finished the 2013 first round against the Caps with two straight shutouts. Then he takes a few days' break and has an awful series against Boston. The same thing happened in the series we blew against the Caps that we lead 3-1. He was lights out in game 4, then game 5 and 6 he looked absolutely awful. Some of the goals he gave up he should give up maybe twice a whole year. It seems like in the playoffs he could never go on a long streak of playing above average, he'd be otherworldly and then horrible.

 

[Levitate]

I think the "weirdest" thing about Lundqvist is that most of the other players who won the Vezina over him during his career mainly had a short peak of a few really good seasons, and then fell off for one reason or another to below Lundqvist's level. I feel like he's had fewer peaks in his career but also fewer valley's. He's just been very consistent as a top goaltender for basically his entire career (until the last few years as age takes hold)

 

[Pavel Buchnevich]

Shestyorkin is not going to play a season in the AHL. He’s one of the biggest stars in the KHL. That’s not going to happen. It wasn’t going to happen with Buchnevich, and he was less established when coming over than Shestyorkin.

Could Shestyorkin be sent to get a couple of games here or there if he’s not the starter and that player is earning most of the starts? I don’t see why not, but a week in the AHL is not really being an AHL player. The Rangers need to plan for him to have an NHL spot, otherwise their best prospect will stay in Russia.

Besides, the KHL is the second best league in the world and he’s now too good for that league. The only step up is the NHL, and he’s earned a chance to play in the NHL. He might need some time to get accustomed to NA ice, but I’d be very surprised if that wasn’t at the NHL level.

 

[SnowblindNYR]

I guess but they were pretty infrequent, far less frequent than the majority of goalies in the league. Every goalie has a stretch of meh games.

I think we were just spoiled because he played absolutely out of his mind 90% of the time, so when he played "average" it stood out.

90% is a stretch. Every season he'd have at least a month or two where was awful. Even in 11-12.

 

[Edge]

90% is a stretch. Every season he'd have at least a month or two where was awful. Even in 11-12.

And maybe that's what stands out, it wasn't like a couple of bad games here and there, it was like he go have a pretty poor stretch and then player otherworldly to finish around his usual top 5 best.

But this topic has come up around here and so there has to be "something" that multiple people are feeling/seeing.

That's not to diminish Lundqvist in any way, but there was just this feeling like you could tell quickly if you were heading into one of "those" stretches and he'd reflect it on the ice with his demeanor.

Almost like an artist, there was something "moody" about his play that you could sense.

 

[ThirdEye]

I agree Edge... I love Hank to death and have defended him extensively, but unfortunately looking back what comes to mind immediately are the untimely goals he's given up in huge games. If you look at his whole career it's undoubtedly impressive, but if you look at his performances month to month it's obvious he had some major ups and downs.

It could just be that we hold him to an insane standard, but I don't think any Rangers fan can deny that for the amount of talent he possessed that they aren't at least a little bit disappointed that he only ever won one trophy, and it's not the one we really care about.

 

[Glen Sathers Cigar]

I personally feel that georgiev is a better goalie than lundqvist is right now I do. I have more confidence in him than hank.

I think it's a little soon to be saying that. He's played 10 NHL games.

Hell, he's only played 47 North American Professional games so far. He's still in the "sample size too small" category. Definitely promising so far though.

 

[Kovalev27]

I think it's a little soon to be saying that. He's played 10 NHL games.

Hell, he's only played 47 North American Professional games so far. He's still in the "sample size too small" category. Definitely promising so far though.

I personally feel that way is what I said and I do. I trust Georgiev’s technique. He’s a modern day quality nhl goalie. Hank isn’t at this point. He plays an outdated style that is no longer working. Opens up on most chances. Never looks square anymore.

 

[Gordon Bombay]

The reality is that if/when the Rangers believe Shesterkin is ready for the NHL, we're probably saying goodbye to Georgiev.

Not that it's what most would want to hear, but I have a hard time envisioning a different scenario, unless Georgiev doesn't perform well at the NHL.

And if that happens, there's really not much to debate when it comes to starting Shesterkin in the NHL over him.

Without opening a can of worms when you look at this way it kind of explains the Lindbolm pick, even though everyone hated it. Looks to me like they know Georgiev is gone and they want to have another potential option in the pipeline.

 

[Harbour Dog]

Hank was the best goalie of his generation, the best goalie the Rangers have ever had, and most likely will go down as a top ten goalie of all time.

If we can get another goalie to be equally as "consistent" for most of his career, even if he is just as "awful" for a couple months each season, then I will be ecstatic.

 

[Edge]

Hank was the best goalie of his generation, the best goalie the Rangers have ever had, and most likely will go down as a top ten goalie of all time.

If we can get another goalie to be equally as "consistent" for most of his career, even if he is just as "awful" for a couple months each season, then I will be ecstatic.

And that’s the other side of the equation I also struggle with.

 

[effen]

People are whitewashing the many, many years he covered up for an incredible amount of pylons. Rachunek, Malik, the corpse of Paul Mara, Staal/Girardi, Stu Bickel, Torts teams not making it past the red line for the entire 3rd period for literally years, etc.

He really only had two truly solid top to bottom rosters his entire career. Always two or three complete slugs leading to Mike Emerick have guttural orgasms.

 

[kovazub94]

Taking over as Lundqvist heir Shesterkin will be held to an unattainable standard. Those who bemoan Henrik’s performance now will be ripping apart Shesty after his first stretch where he struggles.

 

[Amazing Kreiderman]

Taking over as Lundqvist heir Shesterkin will be held to an unattainable standard. Those who bemoan Henrik’s performance now will be ripping apart Shesty after his first stretch where he struggles.

Maybe the Rangers will finally build a team the right way then. Building a team from the goalie onwards never works. Elite goalies can't perform like one without a good defense in front of them. Without elite centers contributing to the 200-foot game. This is why I've always had a problem with Lundqvist. Not that he's a bad goalie, but he's paid to do something no goalie in the world can do. When the defense stinks, an elite goalie can't help you. Goalies aren't a priority. They're the punters of the NHL in terms of how much they impact the game.

Out of all positions in hockey, the gap between elite and good is the smallest when it comes to the goalie position