The New York Rangers postseason run could be coming to an end tonight at the hands of the Pittsburgh Penguins. Getting a win for New York hinges on one player stepping up, Igor Shesterkin.
After a great regular season that will probably earn Igor Shesterkin the Vezina Trophy, he followed things up with a less impressive postseason performance. Shesterkin has put up a .905 save percentage and a goals-against-average of 4.26, the worst amongst active goalies in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Shesterkin turning things around hinges on him getting those big stops he would get during the regular season, and the team overall doing a better job limiting Sidney Crosby.
Sidney Crosby has two goals and seven assists through the four games these two teams have played thus far. He has been making great plays like the one below all series.
Crosby literally skates through three players and helps set up a play that eventually leads to a goal for him. This is a save that Shesterkin should have made, but overall a play that the defense should have shut down beforehand.
Everyone needs to be better on the Rangers roster. While the Ranger that needs to be lights out tonight is Shesterkin, this entire team needs to stand up and have a great effort with him.
The Rangers need to do a better job limiting the chances of the Penguins’ top players because they still do have the better roster on paper, it is just one line that is drastically outperforming New York.
The Penguins are up 3-1 in the series, but this thing is still far from over. It takes four wins to advance to the next round and sometimes that final win is the hardest to come by, especially considering this is a home game for New York desperate to keep the series alive on home ice.