NHL Rumors: Igor Shesterkin rejects Rangers' massive $88M contract offer

New York Rangers superstar goalie Igor Shesterkin reportedly turned down an eight-year, $88 million extension offer. NHL insider Kevin Weekes broke the news on social media on Tuesday morning.

The news seemingly came out of nowhere and caught many by surprise. The extension would have paid Shesterkin $11 million per season, which would have made him the highest-paid goalie in NHL history. However, the Russian reportedly opted to turn down the contract extension.

It's uncertain why Shesterkin decided to turn down the massive contract extension with the Rangers. The superstar goalie now enters the 2024-25 NHL season on the final year of his four-year, $22.67 million deal.

Shesterkin went 36-17-2 last season with a 2.58 GAA and a .913 SV% as he led the Rangers to the best record in the NHL.

New York Rangers GM wanted to get an Igor Shesterkin deal done

Rangers GM wants to re-sign Shesterkin- Source: Imagn

Igor Shesterkin became eligible to sign an extension as of July 1 but no deal has happened yet.

When the Rangers opened training camp, general manager Chris Drury said his goal was to re-sign Shesterkin and keep him a Ranger for the foreseeable future.

“I’m not going to get into any private discussions or negotiations with Igor or his agents publicly, but you all know what I think of Igor and what we all think of Igor around here and we certainly hope he’s here and a Ranger for a long time,” Drury said, via NHL.com.

“You know how important he is to our team and our organization. We’re going to do everything we can to make sure he’s here for a long time.”

Igor Shesterkin has been with the Rangers since the 2019-20 season. He took over as the starter in the 2021-22 season. However, during training camp, he said he wasn't sure what the future was going to hold for him.

"I have one more year, so I don't care about it. ... I love the organization, I love the team, I love the fans," Shesterkin said. "So of course it will be great to stay here, but you never know what can happen."

The Rangers are set to open its 2024-25 NHL season on Wednesday against the Pittsburgh Penguins.