NHL

Buffalo Sabres at New York Rangers

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Rangers goalie Igor Shesterkin pulled in second period after allowing five goals against Sabres

Buffalo Sabres vs. New York Rangers: Game Highlights

The 28-year-old Russian, who entered the contest with a 6-2-1 with a 2.22 goals-against average, allowed a goal by Sabres captain Rasmus Dahlin 26 seconds into the game.

He then gave up four goals in the second period — including three in a span of 2:12 span — as the Sabres took a 5-0 lead. Dylan Cozens, Tage Thompson, Jordan Greenway and Sam Lafferty scored in the middle period before Shesterkin was replaced by Jonathan Quick with 6:09 to go after Lafferty scored.

The Sabres went on to beat the Rangers 6-1.

“It really unraveled in the second,″ Rangers defenseman and captain Jacob Trouba said. “Our goalie has kind of kept us in this thing for the first 12 games. We’ve got to be better and give up less quality chances.”

The Rangers, who fell to 8-3-1 this season, have been winning largely because of Shesterkin's stellar play.

“This certainly was not our best,″ Rangers defenseman Adam Fox said. ”We left him out to dry. It’s not good enough.”

Shesterkin won the Vezina Trophy as the league’s best goaltender in 2021-22 when he was 36-13-4 with a 2.07 goals against average. He won 37 games in 2022-23 and 36 last season as the Rangers finished with the NHL’s best record.

Shesterkin is in the final season of a four-year, $22.67 million contract and there has been talk of him wanting to be the highest-paid goaltender in NHL history.

Regular Season Series

BUF leads series 1-0

Scoring Summary

Goal 1st Period 0:26 Rasmus Dahlin Goal (2) Wrist Shot, assists: Bowen Byram (6), Ryan McLeod (5)
Goal 2nd Period 2:45 Dylan Cozens Goal (2) Snap Shot, assists: Zach Benson (1), Jack Quinn (2)
Goal 2nd Period 11:39 Tage Thompson Goal (9) Wrist Shot, assists: JJ Peterka (6), Connor Clifton (3)
Goal 2nd Period 12:09 Jordan Greenway Goal (3) Snap Shot, assists: Jason Zucker (8)
Goal 2nd Period 13:51 Sam Lafferty Goal (1) Backhand, assists: Beck Malenstyn (2), Peyton Krebs (3)
Goal 3rd Period 4:21 Will Cuylle Goal (4) Tip-In, assists: Zac Jones (3), Artemi Panarin (10)
Goal 3rd Period 11:55 Zach Benson Goal (1) Wrist Shot, assists: Jack Quinn (3), Alex Tuch (8)

Statistics

https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/nhl/500/buf.png&h=100&scale=crop&w=100&location=originBUF https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/nhl/500/nyr.png&h=100&scale=crop&w=100&location=originNYR
21 Blocked Shots 10
17 Hits 34
5 Takeaways 5
22 Shots 26
1 Power Play Goals 0
4 Power Play Opportunities 4
25.0 Power Play Percentage 0.0
0 Short Handed Goals 0
0 Shootout Goals 0
28 Faceoffs Won 26
51.9 Faceoff Win Percent 48.1
21 Giveaways 10
4 Total Penalties 4
8 Penalty Minutes 8

Game Information

Madison Square Garden

Location: New York, NY
Attendance: 18,006 | Capacity:

2024-25 Atlantic Division Standings

TEAM W L PTS OTL
Florida 11 4 23 1
Toronto 10 6 22 2
Boston 8 7 18 2
Ottawa 8 7 16 0
Tampa Bay 7 6 15 1
Detroit 7 7 15 1
Buffalo 7 8 15 1
Montreal 5 9 12 2

2024-25 Metropolitan Division Standings

TEAM W L PTS OTL
New Jersey 11 6 24 2
Carolina 11 4 22 0
Washington 10 4 21 1
NY Rangers 9 4 19 1
NY Islanders 6 6 16 4
Pittsburgh 6 9 15 3
Philadelphia 6 8 14 2
Columbus 5 8 12 2
Full Standings