Shesterkin Asking Price Confirmed + New Development on Extension Talks With Rangers

We'd been hearing rumors all summer that New York Rangers goaltender Igor Shesterkin was looking to become the highest-paid netminder in NHL history. Now we have confirmation from Mollie Walker of The New York Post, who tells us that Shesterkin's asking price is indeed a $12 million AAV.

And the other huge development is that the goalie has no intention of contract talks extending into the regular season. That gives the Rangers two weeks to bridge the large divide that still apparently exists between the two sides.

Igor Shesterkin stressed his desire to keep his mind on his game when fielding questions about his pending unrestricted free agency next summer. So if negotiations don’t resume and a deal is not reached over the next two weeks or so, as The Athletic first reported, there likely won’t be any during the season, The Post confirmed.

They had preliminary talks earlier this summer, but as Walker writes, the lack of a deal to this point indicates that "they’re not seeing eye-to-eye." She also indicates that there is "little chance" the Russian keeper would give the Rangers a hometown discount.

Shesterkin as a UFA next offseason should have teams across the league clamoring to sign him, even with the high price tag. His .921 save percentage over the last three seasons ranks second among all NHL goalies. He already has one Vezina Trophy under his belt and two other Top 8 finishes amongst his four full seasons with the Blueshirts.

After being selected in the 4th round of the 2014 NHL Draft, Shesterkin finally debuted with a 12-game trial with the Rangers in 2019-20 and immediately showed his potential, posting a .932 Sv% while going 10-2-0.

Overall, in 213 career appearances, he has a .921 Sv% with a 2.43 goals-against average, and a record of 135-59-17. The Rangers can ill-afford to lose their most important player.