Official: Samuel Montembeault Is Not the Solution for the Rangers in Goal

Michaël Petit
Official: Samuel Montembeault Is Not the Solution for the Rangers in Goal
Credit: Arianne Bergeron/NHLI via Getty Images

Very early in the season, the Rangers learned that they would be without their star goaltender, Igor Shesterkin, for the entire season. On top of that, Joonas Korpisalo is also sidelined.

So far, Dylan Garand has been the No. 1 goaltender. He's doing a good job, but everyone agrees he's no Shesterkin.

He has a save percentage of .900 and a goals-against average of 2.65.

It was to be expected that the Rangers would make a move to bring in some help in net, and Samuel Montembeault could have been a temporary solution.

Instead, they decided to give James Reimer, a 38-year-old veteran, a chance.

Reimer had been given a tryout with the Rangers' affiliate, and let's just say he didn't miss his chance to prove himself in his first AHL game.

He recorded a shutout on 35 shots, which earned him a contract with the big league team.

He also became the oldest goaltender to record a shutout in the AHL.

Reimer signed a one-year contract worth $850,000.

It's still a shame for Montembeault, who is expected to return to action soon, since he certainly could have had a real chance to prove himself in Shesterkin's absence.

With Dylan Garand as the number one goaltender and Spencer Martin as the number two, Montembeault had what it took to try to steal the starting goaltender spot.

That would have been perfect for him, since he's in the final year of his contract. He would have had the chance to prove he can still be a good goalie, and then sign a good contract this summer.

The Quebec-born goaltender will have to wait for his chance, and everything indicates (for now) that he'll have to compete against Fowler and Dobes with very little playing time upon his return to action.

He'd actually had a good training camp, but his injury prevented him from showing his true worth.


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