The end of Tuesday night’s Bruins-Rangers game was certainly entertaining. An up-and-down, wide-open overtime session was followed by a nine-round shootout that ultimately ended with the Bruins losing but still grabbing a point on the road.
It was also pretty confusing. With 40 seconds left in overtime, Rangers goalie Igor Shesterkin, who had been excellent up to that point, got pulled from the game by the NHL’s concussion spotter.
Two minutes earlier, Shesterkin had been knocked down by Bruins forward Craig Smith. It didn’t appear to be too hard of a hit, and you would have thought that if there was any concern, he would have been pulled right away, not two minutes later and after making a flashy glove save on Taylor Hall. So, the timing of Shesterkin getting pulled was the first head-scratcher.
It’s worth noting, though, that TV cameras did catch Shesterkin blinking his eyes and shifting his head a bit, which could have been what prompted the spotter to eventually call for him to be checked out.
Shesterkin was clearly not happy. After first skating away from the Rangers trainer who came out to get him, he then slammed his stick against the glass while leaving the ice. In came Alexandar Georgiev for the final 40 seconds of overtime and -- we thought -- the shootout.
But here’s where things really get confusing: Shesterkin actually returned for the start of the shootout, just four minutes of real time later. Huh?
While there is no set amount of time a player being checked for a concussion needs to go to the “quiet room,” baseline concussion tests can take up to 15-20 minutes. Perhaps it’s possible that Shesterkin was able to pass the tests he needed to pass and get cleared in just four minutes, but… that seems quick.
Shesterkin would go on to stop seven of the Bruins’ nine shootout attempts. Jeremy Swayman was equally great in the Bruins net, but ultimately surrendered the winning goal to K’Andre Miller in the bottom of the ninth.
There was no official explanation of the situation from the NHL after the game. Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy said that he picked his first three shooters in the shootout thinking they would be facing Georgiev instead, but added that he didn’t think it made a difference in the end given how long the shootout went.
Rangers coach Gerard Gallant also admitted he thought Shesterkin was done.
“I didn’t know nothing. I thought he was done,” Gallant said. “I had no idea. He went off, and then the next thing I know I see him coming out and the trainer said, one of our coaches on the headset, he’s coming back out.”
So, that’s it, then. The Bruins, still without Brad Marchand and Patrice Bergeron, get a pretty good point on the road against a playoff team. Fans get an entertaining game. And everyone gets left with questions about what the heck actually happened with Shesterkin.
Related
