For those counting at home, Labor Day marks 10 months before Igor Shesterkin becomes an unrestricted free agent. That’s certainly enough time for the New York Rangers to negotiate a pricey long-term contract extension with their star goalie. But it’s a reminder that a deadline is looming.
Rangers general manager Chris Drury certainly doesn’t need that reminder. Extending Shesterkin is his top priority, especially now that offseason player transfers are complete and the roster is largely ready to start the 2024-25 season.
In the best case scenario, both sides will have reached an agreement before the puck drops on the opening game in Pittsburgh on October 9. This way, the Rangers will have their most important player under contract for the coming years, have cost certainty for the next offseason and can focus on contract extensions for upcoming restricted free agents Alexis Lafreniere and K’Andre Miller.
And it would end the potential sideshow that would require Shesterkin, his teammates and coach Peter Laviolette to answer the question of whether the contract situation is a distraction for the goalie and the team during the season.
However, Shesterkin seems to already have a plan when it comes to contract issues.
These are not easy negotiations. Not when you consider how much money Shesterkin could earn with his next deal.
It has already been reported that Shesterkin wants to become the highest-paid goalie in NHL history. That would mean he would earn more than Carey Price’s $10.5 million per year. Many believe Shesterkin is aiming for more than $12 million per season.
And while Drury and Co. are keen to keep the 2021-22 Vezina Trophy winner long-term, cost is still an issue. Every dollar saved in negotiations is critical, with Lafreniere and Miller set to make big gains and the Rangers already at the salary cap.
Logic dictates that the Rangers and Shesterkin will negotiate a contract extension before the 28-year-old becomes a UFA on July 1 of next year. But since he’s still without a contract after this season, let’s take a look at where Shesterkin stands on the potential off-contract goalie market next summer.
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Rangers’ Igor Shesterkin leads top 5 free agent NHL goalies for 2025
Shesterkin tops the list of the top 15 NHL goalies who can be unrestricted free agents in 2025. Marc-Andre Fleury is the most accomplished goalie on the list, but the 39-year-old is likely playing his final NHL season and, even if he isn’t, is no longer in Shesterkin’s league at this point in his illustrious career. Frederik Andersen will become a free agent at 35 and is likely in the final stages of his journey to becoming the No. 1 goalie.
Then there are a number of familiar, if not particularly exciting, options like Jake Allen, David Rittich, Dan Vladar, Mackenzie Blackwood and Vitek Vanecek. Each of them will likely find a new home in a supporting role.
Ilya Samsonov is a big X-factor in this group. He is trying to rebuild his career after a turbulent time with the Toronto Maple Leafs and signed a one-year deal with the Vegas Golden Knights this summer in an attempt to turn his fortunes around.
At the moment, Samsonov is just outside the clear top 5, which also includes Shesterkin. Let’s take a look.
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5. Joey Daccord (Seattle Kraken)
A year ago, it would have been hard to imagine Joey Daccord being one of the top five goalies available in 2025. But the career reserve and minor leaguer finally got his chance with the Kraken last season and flourished as the No. 1 option. Daccord appeared in 50 games and posted a 2.46 goals-against average, a .916 save percentage and three shutouts. A late bloomer, Daccord could earn a big payday next summer if he repeats those numbers and helps lead the Kraken back to the Stanley Cup playoffs.
He’ll be 29 next season and doesn’t have much experience yet, but let’s see if Daccord can build on his breakthrough season and show that it was no fluke.
4. Adin Hill (Vegas Golden Knights)
Adin Hill is the only goalie in this top five to have won the Stanley Cup. If he wants to make it big, he’ll have to prove he can stay healthy and be more than a 1a option in a split rotation. Hill has a 2.68 GAA and a .910 save percentage, but has never played more than the 35 games he played with the Golden Knights last season.
Of course, he proved himself in the 2023 postseason, going 11-4 with a 2.17 goals-against average and a .932 save percentage in 16 games and starting in goal the night Vegas won the Cup. That’s saying something.
Samsonov and maybe even Akira Schmid will challenge Hill for playing time, so it’s an exciting contract year for the 28-year-old.
3. Alexandar Georgiev (Colorado Avalanche)
How about that symmetry? Shesterkin’s former goalie partner with the Rangers, Alexandar Georgiev, is also set to become a UFA on July 1. As with Shesterkin with the Rangers, there’s a chance the Avalanche could sign Georgiev – their clear No. 1 goalie – to a contract extension before he becomes a free agent.
Whether Georgiev can land a big contract is still a bit of a question mark, though. While he is undoubtedly one of the best UFA goalies in 2025, there are concerns about how much his production dropped last season (3.02 GAA, .897 save percentage) and that he may be overused in Colorado (NHL-high 125 games over the last two seasons).
But he plays for an elite team, so a strong season from Georgiev and a deep playoff run will likely land him a lucrative long-term contract somewhere.
2. Linus Ullmark (Ottawa Senators)
The only goalie in the conversation as the best of this free-agent group besides Shesterkin is Linus Ullmark. The 2022-23 Vezina Trophy winner shined over the past three seasons with the Boston Bruins, sharing goal with Jeremy Swayman. He had an incredible 1.89 goals-against average, on top of his 40-6-1 record two seasons ago, and was still very good (2.57 goals-against average, .915 save percentage) despite coming back down to earth last season.
Now the 31-year-old is the clear No. 1 option for the Senators, a younger team that needs him as a key player behind a defense that isn’t in the same league as Boston’s. There’s a lot of pressure on him, but he’s damn good. A solid season should earn him a big deal, maybe even from the Senators, who have been looking for an elite goalie for years.
1. Igor Shchesterkin (New York Rangers)
As good as Ullmark is, there is no more attractive name on this list than Shesterkin. He is considered by many to be the best goalie in the NHL. And at worst, he is in the conversation with players like Connor Hellebuyck, Andrei Vasilevskiy and Sergei Bobrovsky.
Shesterkin’s brilliant postseason track record, which includes leading the Rangers to the Eastern Conference finals in two of the last three seasons, was buoyed by his outstanding play last spring. And his track record over the last four regular seasons is equally impressive: He ranks second among goalies who have played at least 100 games with a .920 save percentage, behind only Ullmark (.923) and fourth with 125 wins.
He gets paid.
Read more: Analysis of the New York Rangers
