Kreider extended, Shesterkin injured
GREENBURGH, N.Y — Chris Kreider is staying with the Rangers after all.
Kreider and the team agreed to terms on a sevenyear contract extension Monday. The 28-year-old was considered one of the top potential trade candidates at the NHL deadline.
Instead, the Rangers, who have won 10 of 13 games out of the All-Star break, bridged the gap with Kreider on the long-term deal he wanted. The contract is reportedly worth $45 million.
The Rangers may have lost a key component to their playoff drive, however. Rookie goaltender Igor Shesterkin suffered a “small rib fracture,” in a car accident Sunday night in Brooklyn, team president John Davidson said.
Davidson said the rib “is non-displaced,” and Shesterkin will be “reassessed regarding this in a couple weeks.”
Teammate Pavel Buchnevich also was in the car with Shesterkin, who was driving.
According to Davidson, the players were treated by team physicians at New
York Presbyterian Hospital. Davidson said Buchnevich “was quite shaken up,” but suffered “no significant injuries, and he’s listed as day to day.”
Davidson said “a vehicle pulled a U-turn in front of them, and there was a collision. The airbag was deployed immediately,” adding that Shesterkin and Buchnevich were wearing seatbelts.“
The Rangers recalled Shesterkin from the Wolf Pack on Jan. 6, and he has a 9-1-0 record with a 2.23 goals against average and .940 save percentage in 10 games. Buchnevich has scored 14 goals and 23 assists for 37 points in 61 games this season. In 240 NHL games, Buchnevich has 57 goals and 81 assists.
As for the Kreider deal, Davidson said both sides worked hard to get it done.
“There was lots of dialogue; this has gone on for a few days,“Davidson said. “Both sides are very happy with the deal we were able to put together.“
Kreider has 24 goals and 21 assists for 45 points in 60 games this season. He was a 2009 first-round draft pick and has played his entire career with the Rangers.