The New York Rangers’ bye week comes at an opportune time for the struggling leaders of the Metropolitan Division. For all of them except, perhaps, the one who needs it most. Igor Shesterkin will instead head to Toronto for the All-Star game. His second trip in two years comes at the end of a month he’d surely like to forget. With a season save percentage (.899) that puts him near the bottom of the league, he and the team must hope that hanging around the league’s other best players and having a bit of on-the-ice fun restores his confidence.
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Goaltending is a fickle art, and anyone who has followed the NHL for a few years can come up with an example of a goalie who is all-world one year and seemingly done the next. It’s hard to know whether it is physical, mental, or some combination, but Shesterkin hasn’t reported any injuries and hasn’t seen a decrease in playing time. Sometimes, the best thing a struggling player can do is get away from the game. The Rangers and their fans hope that the All-Star game counts as a getaway for Shesterkin.
On the other end of the spectrum is Vincent Trocheck, who is also headed to his second career All-Star game. Trocheck is having his best year to date with the Rangers, having seen his connection to Artemi Panarin blossom in their second year together. The improvement of Alexis Lafreniere has also helped make the Rangers’ second line its most dangerous. Trocheck is the engine of that line, winning faceoffs and going to the dirty parts of the ice regularly. The all-star game selection is an excellent recognition of everything he does for the Rangers and a great chance for him to show the league that he belongs in the exquisite company in which he will find himself.
There is a continual debate about breaks in the middle of a sports season that usually comes down to hot teams and players not wanting anything, including an all-star break, to ruin their momentum and slumping teams and players happy for the chance to reset. For the Rangers, the reset is likely what the team needs. But for their two all-stars, it is a mixed bag. One is likely raring to go, and one would probably rather be on a beach.
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