The New York Rangers are set to make goaltender Igor Shesterkin the highest-paid player at his position in NHL history. The Rangers and Shesterkin agreed to an eight-year contract extension with an average annual value of $11.5 million, reports ESPN’s Kevin Weekes and Emily Kaplan.
With that annual salary, Shesterkin will surpass left back (and leading scorer) Artemi Panarin as the Rangers’ highest-paid player. Panarin earns $11.6 million per season as part of a seven-year, $81.5 million contract he agreed to in 2019.
Carey Price was previously the highest-paid goaltender in league history, earning an average annual salary of $10.5 million as part of his eight-year, $84 million contract with the Montreal Canadiens, signed in 2018.
Shesterkin, 28, is in his sixth season with the Rangers and the final year of a four-year contract that pays him $5.66 million per year. He and the team have been negotiating since the offseason, trying to reach a new deal before Shesterkin became a free agent.
He was the team’s fourth-round pick (No. 118 overall) in the 2014 NHL Draft by SKA St. Petersburg in the Russian Continental Hockey League.
You’ve got to be kidding me with this save from Shesterkin.
The change of direction after sliding to the right. The stretch. Catching the puck from the goal line.
Incredible pic.twitter.com/L0BBFfcTSd
—Jesse Granger (@JesseGranger_) December 28, 2022
This season, Shesterkin has an 8-9-1 record in 18 games with a 3.05 goals-against average and a .908 save percentage. In his career, he has compiled a record of 143-68-18 with a 2.48 GAA and a .920 save percentage.
Shesterkin had his best season during the 2021-22 campaign in which he finished with a 36-13-4 record and led the NHL with a 2.07 GAA and a .935 save percentage. He received the Vezina Trophy, which is awarded to the best goaltender in the league.
The Rangers are currently fourth in the Metropolitan Division with a 13-10-1 record and 27 points. They rank eighth in the Eastern Conference by percentage points over the Philadelphia Flyers and one point ahead of the Pittsburgh Penguins.
New York just traded defenseman and team captain Jacob Trouba to the Anaheim Ducks. Removing Trouba’s $8 million salary from the payroll may have helped seal the Shesterkin deal.