In today’s NHL rumour rundown, we start off with the New York Rangers, who lost goaltender Igor Shesterkin to injury after a blazing hot start to the season. Next, defenseman Darnell Nurse took questions after a skate and ended up with some comments towards reporter Mark Spector going viral.
Finally, Simon Edvinsson continues to hold out. With the Detroit Red Wings not giving him the offers he wants, a trade is now his preference, and the Utah Mammoth could swing a big deal.
Shesterkin Injury Extinguishes Rangers’ Hot Start
The Rangers entered the season with high hopes for themselves, but with a tough Eastern Conference and a disappointing finish to the year last season, many had predicted they would miss the playoffs.
Now, two weeks into the season, the Rangers went into their matchup against the Washington Capitals as the top team in the league with a 4-1-0 record. A huge part of this success has been Shesterkin’s play, as he holds some of the best goaltending stats through the first few games of the year.
New York Rangers goaltender Igor Shesterkin (Brad Penner-Imagn Images)
Unfortunately for both Shesterkin and the Rangers, during their bout against the Capitals, Shesterkin slid across the crease, and when his right skate made contact with the post, he fell to the ice in pain and needed help off the ice.
Dylan Garand is a promising backup, but if Shesterkin is poised to miss a significant amount of time, the Rangers could look to bring in another goaltender, with Joonas Korpisalo also injured.
A goalie trade wouldn’t be for someone of Connor Hellebuyck’s talent, but they could take a flyer on a goalie like Sam Montembeault, or another goalie who could be dealt.
After adding players like Pavel Dorofeyev, Marcus Pettersson, and Sean Durzi, they clearly aren’t looking to lose.
Nurse Chirps Reporter After Oilers Tenure Concludes
Nurse was on the receiving end of quite a bit of criticism throughout his time with the Edmonton Oilers. One reporter who has done a lot of that criticism was Mark Spector.
As Nurse was preparing for Saturday’s matchup against the Oilers, he took questions from his locker stall.
Spector asked about playing for a team in California, and Nurse responded by stating, “With my low IQ, I don’t know if I am able to answer your questions. Your questions are a little above my head. Next.”
In June, amid trade rumours regarding Nurse’s departure from the Oilers, Spector wrote, “At age 31, hockey sense will go down as Nurse’s great weakness — wherever he ends up.”
Nurse may miss part of the city, the team, the players, but after years of facing them, he may not miss the Edmonton media crew.
Desnoyers a Possible Return for Edvinsson?
As Edvinsson continues to wait for an offer worth signing, he has made it known that he would prefer a trade out of Detroit.
The Red Wings are still committed to getting a contract figured out, but with little to no progress on that, what comes next?
The Athletic’s Corey Pronman looked at some possible trade situations, and noted Utah could be a team that makes sense.
Pronman wrote, “…even if Caleb Desnoyers probably projects as a No. 2 center for Utah, that is the type of asset I can see being part of a reasonable Edvinsson swap, given that Detroit does not have a time pressure to make this deal because it’s expected they will not be competing in the near term.” (from ‘Weighing Red Wings’ options in Simon Edvinsson contract negotiations, trade market’, The Athletic, OCt. 9, 2026)
That is definitely the kind of deal the Red Wings are looking for, but from the Mammoth side, with a player holding out, wanting a trade, and needing a big extension, Caleb Desnoyers would be a big chip to trade.
That is what it takes, though. Edvinsson is a great player and would be impactful on the Mammoth blue line. Desnoyers, 19, has had three great seasons with the Moncton Wildcats and is now in the American Hockey League with the Tuscan Roadrunners.
The Mammoth have a lot of high-end prospects, and Desnoyers could be one of the many they could use as a trade chip to bring in an impactful player now.
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