Any hope of gaining the momentum the Rangers are desperately seeking coming off the Winter Classic was mostly erased when Igor Shesterkin went down with a scary-looking lower-body injury midway through the first period against Utah on Monday night at Madison Square Garden.

And it was completely flushed when the Rangers blew a third-period lead in a 3-2 overtime loss.

But as damaging as another loss was to a team that simply can’t get on a roll this year, the loss of their goalie was considerably more concerning.

“He’s an important part of this team,” head coach Mike Sullivan said following the latest defeat. “We hope it’s not too serious.”

The Rangers were only calling it a lower-body injury and Shesterkin was due to undergo more tests, but the play didn’t look good, as Shesterkin was knocked out of the game with an apparent left leg injury after he fell awkwardly as Utah’s JJ Peterka charged toward the net.

Peterka ended up not making much — if any — contact with Shesterkin, but the goalie remained on the ice for several minutes in obvious pain while being attended to by a trainer.

Rangers goaltender Igor Shesterkin is helped off the ice by a trainer and New York Rangers defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov after falling back on his leg in the first period at Madison Square Garden on Monday, January 05, 2026. JASON SZENES/ NY POST

After slamming his pad on the ice several times, Shesterkin got to his feet as chants of “Igor” rang through the Garden.

He had to be assisted off the ice and ruled out with a lower body injury, replaced by backup Jonathan Quick.

Quick was also knocked into in front of the net later in the game, but wasn’t hurt.

Asked if he believed the Mammoth were crashing the net too aggressively, Sullivan said, “I think they were going to the net hard. Numerous times there was contact. When you go to the net hard, sometimes there’s incidental contact. I think we could go to the net hard. It’s an important aspect of scoring goals.”

Mika Zibanejad passes the puck off one knee in the first period at Madison Square Garden in Manhattan, New York, Monday, January 05, 2026. JASON SZENES/ NY POST

Regardless of how it happened, losing Shesterkin for a significant period would be another blow to the Rangers, who have lost four of their past five games and continue to sit near the bottom of the Eastern Conference.

“There are certain guys that drive your team and he’s one of them for us,’’ Sullivan said of Shesterkin. “He’s an elite player at his position. I think he’s one of the very best in the game. Those types of players are difficult to replace.’’

After Shesterkin stopped all nine shots he faced, Quick entered and was solid, but not good enough to steal a win for the Rangers, as Utah’s Sean Durzi beat him for the game-winner in OT.

The game got chippy early in the second period, when Daniil But bumped into Quick, igniting a scrum, as Quick went right at But.

Rangers left wing Alexis Lafrenière celebrates with his teammates after he scores a goal in the second period at Madison Square Garden in Manhattan, New York, Monday, January 05, 2026. JASON SZENES/ NY POST

The Rangers went ahead 1-1 with a power-play goal at 8:29 in the second, as Alexis Lafrenière knocked in a perfect feed from Mika Zibanejad.

The Mammoth tied the game 1-1 at 12:39 when Dylan Guenther knocked in his own rebound, beating Quick.

With a two-man advantage, the Rangers went up 2-1 at 16:36 in the second with Vincent Trocheck deflecting in a shot attempt by Artemi Panarin.

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Utah’s Michael Carcone bullied his way into the crease and beat Quick to make it 2-2 at 6:15 in the third before they finished the comeback.

Of greater concern is Shesterkin’s status.

The 30-year-old Shesterkin is in the midst of another standout season, having appeared in an NHL-high 34 games and with a 2.47 goals-against average.

Not surprisingly, he’s been a key reason the Rangers haven’t fallen even further in the standings.

Prior to the game, owner James Dolan expressed belief not only in the future of the organization, but also this year’s squad, saying on WFAN: “Don’t give up on my team.”

If Shesterkin is out for extended time, it might be hard not to.