Jim Cerny sits down with Marty Biron, the former NHL goalie and broadcaster, during the Rangers’ five-day break. The Rangers are without Igor Shesterkin for the rest of the season, so the conversation covers whether Dylan Garand and Joonas Korpisalo can keep the team afloat, what a goalie trade could look like around the holidays and why Biron wasn’t thrilled with the James Reimer start.

Biron and Jim also get into the bigger picture: the Rangers’ expected goals numbers, the finishing problem, and what the team needs from its power play and top forwards. Biron makes the case that Connor Hellebuyck joining the New Jersey Devils shifts the Metropolitan Division more than Shesterkin’s injury does.

Along the way, Biron tells the Henrik Lundqvist story from Sweden, rants about the league taking his double-zero number, and talks Devin Cooley, Jacob Fowler and the best goalies on Canadian teams.

Key talking points

• Rangers’ playoff outlook without Shesterkin
• Garand’s workload and Korpisalo’s return
• Possible trade targets, including Montembeault
• Why the Reimer start was a head-scratcher
• Expected goals against, finishing and the power play
• Hellebuyck and the Devils
• Cooley, Fowler and the top goalies on Canadian teams

Chapters:

00:00 Rangers hit a five-day break
00:50 Marty Biron joins as the “king of goaltending”
01:05 Two kings in Sweden: the Lundqvist bus tour story
01:54 Jim’s Stockholm lunch run-in with Hank’s fans
03:47 Why Marty could never be an EBUG
05:51 Marty’s double-zero rant
07:28 John Davidson’s year in double zero
08:40 How Marty ended up wearing No. 43
11:19 Rangers fans split on life after Shesterkin
12:20 Can the Rangers make the playoffs without Igor?
12:48 Lucky they didn’t lose Garand on waivers
14:07 Why this is an opportunity for Garand
14:44 Rangers could shop for a goalie by the holidays
15:23 Trade options: Gibson, Bennington, Montembeault
16:21 Montreal’s goalie logjam
17:07 Garand’s small sample size and the waiver risk
18:42 Garand’s long-term upside
19:35 Everything hinges on Korpisalo
21:12 Nine straight starts: the mental toll on Garand
22:16 Marty on stepping in for an injured Hasek
23:52 Why pulling Reimer after one period made no sense
27:49 Chicken or egg: the goalies or the defense?
29:55 Rangers rank 26th in expected goals against
31:45 The top-15 standard they need to hit
32:12 Should the Rangers worry about trailing after one period?
33:00 Plenty of chances, not enough finishing
33:42 Miller, Dorofeyev and Zibanejad need to deliver
34:29 The perfect storm
35:28 The power play as the X factor
36:32 Shesterkin’s knee and next season’s outlook
38:38 Hellebuyck or Shesterkin: what moves the Metro more?
40:30 Devils defend well but couldn’t stop the puck going in
41:39 Marty on the Devils as contenders
41:58 Devin Cooley and the Flames’ goalie turnaround
43:30 Marty’s top five goalies on Canadian teams
45:12 The Maple Leafs and the defensive concept problem
46:20 Marty on Mike Babcock and the Oilers
47:41 Rangers host Oilers Sunday, plus Jets banter
48:15 Wrap-up

Rangers prospects and the Hartford Wolf Pack take center stage as AHL.com’s Patrick Williams joins Jim Cerny on Rink Rap.

In this episode:
• Hartford’s new head coach Jay Leach and the early-season direction
• Which Rangers prospects are standing out in the AHL (and who still has work to do)
• The goaltending situation, including Callum Tung and the James Reimer PTO
• How the Wolf Pack is handling an early 0-5 stretch after a 3-0 start
• Whether this Hartford group is more resilient than past Wolf Pack teams
• Quick Rangers update covering the response after the Devils loss, the Columbus game, and the Ducks win at MSG

Patrick Williams is a longtime AHL reporter who also contributes to NHL.com. He gives an honest look at development, roster decisions, and the push-and-pull between the Rangers and their AHL affiliate.

Timestamps:
0:00 – Intro & Rangers update
15:00 – Patrick Williams joins
20:00 – Jay Leach and the coaching staff
28:00 – Prospects spotlight
45:00 – Goaltending situation
55:00 – Closing thoughts & what’s next

Subscribe to Rink Rap from Forever Blueshirts for more New York Rangers and Hartford Wolf Pack coverage.

Podcast number two this week. Jim Cerny breaks down the Rangers’ 7-1 loss in New Jersey, a night that looked a lot like the last two seasons after a 6-2 start. He covers the roster moves first: Taylor Raddysh is up from Hartford, Jaroslav Chmelar goes back down, and the Wolf Pack signed veteran goalie James Reimer to a PTO. Then he walks through the game: J.T. Miller’s late first-period turnover, the second-period collapse, Dylan Garand getting pulled, and why chasing games is a problem for this team without Igor Shesterkin. The Rangers visit Columbus on Saturday.

Chapters

• 00:00 Intro: a second Rink Rap this week
• 03:11 Raddysh up, Chmelar down
• 03:57 Why Sullivan doesn’t trust the fourth line
• 10:19 What Raddysh brings
• 13:53 James Reimer PTO and goalie depth
• 20:50 The Devils game: Miller’s turnover
• 24:47 Second-period collapse
• 31:00 Why one game shouldn’t cause panic
• 35:00 Wrap-up and what’s next

Jim Cerny and Newsday's Colin Stephenson break down the Rangers' four-game winning streak and the buzz back at Madison Square Garden. They cover Chris Drury's offseason, why the fast start looks sustainable, how Mike Sullivan turned Alexis Lafrenière into a complete player, Cole Beaudoin's NHL debut, Braden Schneider's prove-it season, J.T. Miller's leadership and whether the Rangers' new depth can hold up to injuries.

Chapters:

0:00 Rangers Start Hot

4:30 Drury's summer

8:20 Is it sustainable

16:53 Lafrenière's growth

24:15 Beaudoin's debut

29:36 Schneider's prove-it year

31:35 J.T. Miller

37:50 Rangers depth

Dylan Garand cleared waivers Monday and is headed back to the Hartford Wolfpack for a fifth season. Jim Cerny explains why the decision was made the day Chris Drury traded for Joonas Korpisalo on July 1, and why losing Garand would have left Spencer Martin as the next goalie up behind Igor Shesterkin.

Also in this episode:
- The three goalies who did get claimed: Clay Stevenson (Winnipeg), Levi Merilainen (Vancouver) and Poirier (New Jersey)
- How Garand handles going back to Hartford after saying he didn't plan to
- Albert Schmitz makes the team and debuts Tuesday
- Scott Morrow vs. Matthew Robertson for the extra defenseman spot
- Taylor Raddysh clears waivers, and Matt Rempe is in the lineup on opening night

The Rangers open the 2026-27 season Tuesday night in Boston against the Bruins on ESPN.

Read the full season preview and staff predictions at Forever Blueshirts.

Chapters:
00:00 Opening night is here
00:17 Garand and Raddysh clear waivers
(01:41) Why the Korpisalo trade decided it
(02:50) Drury and the veteran backup pattern
(04:01) Sullivan's "difficult decision"
(05:42) The goalies who got claimed
(08:11) Why losing Garand would have hurt
(09:19) Is Korpisalo the right No. 2?
(11:01) Best-case scenario for the Rangers
(12:15) How does Garand respond?
(16:41) Albert Schmitz makes the team
(18:02) Morrow, Robertson and the extra D
(19:39) Rempe in, opening night lineup
(20:17) Wrap and season preview

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The Rangers are two preseason games into a short camp. Opening night against Boston is next Tuesday, and Jim Cerny runs through who's up and who's down.

Adam Sykora will miss 4-5 months with a lower-body injury from Monday's game against the Devils. Jim didn't see a path for Sykora to the opening-night roster, but his energy and leadership will be missed in Hartford. The upside is depth. Eeli Tolvanen joins the bottom six, and Liam Greentree and Cole Beaudoin are pushing from the AHL.

Alberts Smits is the story of camp. The No. 5 overall pick has skated with the NHL group and alongside Braden Schneider every day. After his poised preseason debut against the Islanders, Jim thinks he has the inside track. Jim also covers:

• Where Smits' arrival leaves Matthew Robertson, Drew Fortescue and Scott Morrow
• What Sean Durzi and Marcus Pettersson change on the second pair
• The last fourth-line spot, between Taylor Raddysh, Matt Rempe and Jaroslav Chmelar
• Whether the Rangers carry three goalies to protect Dylan Garand
• Why Pavel Dorofeyev might be the Rangers' first true sniper since Marian Gaborik, and a J.T. Miller who looks energized

Plus updates on former Rangers Brennan Othmann, Jonny Brodzinski, Carson Soucy and Cam Talbot.

Coming up: Rink Rap is recording at Mustang Harry's near Madison Square Garden to kick off the season. Watch Forever Blueshirts on X for details, and read more at ForeverBlueshirts.com.

Jim Cerny is joined by Russ Cohen of Sportsology and NHL Prospects Radio to break down the Rangers' rookie series against the Philadelphia Flyers.

They cover Alberts Smits' two-game showing as the Rangers' No. 5 overall pick, Drew Fortescue playing his off side on defense, Dylan Roobroeck's physical bounce-back performance, and the development of Liam Greentree and Cole Beaudoin. They also dig into the goaltending, with both Danai Shaiikov and Callum Tung standing out, plus the chemistry between Adam Sykora and Tomas Chrenko. The guys wrap with a look ahead to what to watch at Rangers training camp.

Chapters:
0:00 Intro and Rangers-Flyers rookie series recap
0:55 Russ Cohen joins the show
5:39 Big-picture overview of the rookie series
7:21 Alberts Smits breakdown
13:52 Drew Fortescue playing his off side
17:14 Dylan Roobroeck's bounce-back game
19:44 Cole Beaudoin update and injury note
24:00 Rangers' need for top-six skill
26:49 Liam Greentree's two-way game
29:51 Adam Sykora and Tomas Chrenko chemistry
33:56 2026 draft class overview
39:36 Goaltending: Danai Shaiikov and Callum Tung
43:34 Looking ahead to Rangers training camp

Follow more Rangers coverage at foreverblueshirts.com and follow Russ Cohen's work at Sportsology and NHL Prospects Radio.

This is the Rink Rap podcast, part of the Forever Blueshirts network.