Back to the game at hand, Shesterkin took Markstrom down after feeding him with a series of solid right-handed punches.<\/p>\n
WE GOT ANOTHER GOALIE FIGHT THIS TIME SHESTERKIN VS MARKSTROM \ud83d\ude33\ud83e\udd4a pic.twitter.com\/CqkWXkVPpy<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 B\/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) April 1, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n The tension started when New Jersey forward Paul Cotter made contact with Shesterkin, driving to the net. Adam Fox and Vladislav Gavrikov then immediately shoved Cotter as a result against the glass. Shesterkin went on to leave his crease to give Cotter a shove. Markstr\u00f6m skated down the ice pushing Cotter \u2014 likely in response to the shoving of Cotter.<\/p>\n General consensus surrounds Shesterkin (known by the Blueshirt faithful as “Shesty”) as winning the fight.<\/p>\n Rangers head coach Mike Sullivan agreed.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat a great fight,\u201d Sullivan said postgame, per Peter Baugh of The Athletic<\/a>. \u201cI didn\u2019t know Shesty had that in him.\u201d<\/p>\n Jacob Markstrom Sees First Career NHL Goalie Fight<\/p>\n The MSG crowd went wild as soon as the goalies began going at it and were chanting Shesterkin\u2019s name following the fight. The crowd also erupted when the public address announcer read “Shesty’s” name when going over the resulting penalty minutes.<\/p>\n THAT’S our goalie \ud83e\udd79 pic.twitter.com\/4X1XQJz4ol<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 New York Rangers (@NYRangers) April 1, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n Shesterkin made 22 saves in net; Markstrom finished the night with 18 saves in the loss for New Jersey.<\/p>\n Markstrom previously dropped the gloves while with the Devils’ American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate of the Utica Comets in 2015. It marked Shesterkin’s first fight in his professional hockey career.<\/p>\n Via team reporter Amanda Stein, Markstrom said he engaged with Shesterkin to try and get the Devils going after letting in four goals.<\/p>\n \u201cI felt like I needed to do something. Obviously, it\u2019s frustrating letting in four goals, and then you stand back there, and you want to hit someone, you want to get involved,” Markstrom said postgame to the media<\/a>. “We\u2019re down 4-1, I just tried to get a spark and do something.\u201d<\/p>\n Mar 31, 2026; New York, New York, USA; New York Rangers goaltender Igor Shesterkin (31) and New Jersey Devils goaltender Jacob Markstrom (25) fight in the third period at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images | Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images<\/p>\n![\"New](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/01kn3jzxtnmybgd9dyx3.jpg\" "\\"New")
<\/p>\n