Coming into this season, it seemed fairly likely that Igor Shesterkin would need enough seasoning in the AHL following his KHL career that the Rangers could comfortably navigate their goalie situation. Alex Georgiev has been a perfectly capable backup goaltender for the Rangers, who may be capable of more, but it was fairly clear that Shesterkin was the future in goal.
Fast forward to January, the young Russian has made it far more complicated for the organization than many might have envisioned. Suffering from almost no acclimation issues to the North American game, Shesterkin looked confident and solid in training camp, and although he was assigned to Hartford, he left many with the impression he would be knocking at the door sooner than later.