Igor Shesterkin added one of hockey’s weirdest flexes to his résumé by scoring into an empty net during the New York Rangers’ 5-1 home-opening win over the Tampa Bay Lightning. The play gave Shesterkin his first NHL goal and, according to posts shared by ESPN, The Athletic, and Real App, the first goalie goal in Rangers franchise history.
The NHL’s own social post simply put it the loud way: “IGOR SHESTERKIN GOALIE GOAL!!!”. Another clip shared after the play called it the season’s first goalie goal and showed the puck going the length of the ice into Tampa Bay’s empty net during the Rangers’ opener at home against the Lightning, a detail also reflected in other supplied posts about the 5-1 result and the empty-net finish.
Goalie goals are rare enough that the milestone comes with its own piece of trivia. Hockey writer Jesse Granger posted that Shesterkin became the 18th goalie to score in NHL history, and that his shot was the 21st goalie goal overall.
That helps explain why the reaction looked less like a routine empty-netter and more like a small sporting miracle. A clip and commentary shared in the source packet showed Rangers skaters swarming Shesterkin after the puck went in, which feels about right for a goal that almost never happens and had never happened before for this franchise.
