Garand Makes His Case in Uphill Battle for Rangers' Backup Goalie Position
Dylan Garand stopped 27 shots in a preseason loss to the Devils, aiming to secure the backup role behind Igor Shesterkin.
Rangers goaltender Dylan Garand made 27 saves in a 3-2 preseason loss to the New Jersey Devils on Monday, actively presenting his case for the backup position behind starter Igor Shesterkin.
Throughout the early stages of training camp, Garand's group placement has highlighted his competitive challenge against Joonas Korpisalo for the role. However, Rangers head coach Mike Sullivan provided Garand with a full preseason game to demonstrate his capabilities. Facing an NHL lineup from the Devils, Garand performed well for nearly 58 minutes, despite playing with a group composed primarily of AHL players. The game-winning goal came late in the third period from Jack Hughes, with 2:12 remaining.
"I mean I’ve just tried to, every day just try and give it my best and work hard and compete," Garand said when asked if he felt he made a statement. "There’s so much out of my control, so I’m really just trying to limit that outside noise inside my head and just battle and lay it all out there."
The 24-year-old goaltender had several key moments during the game. With the score tied 2-2 in the third period, Garand made a crucial save on Hughes, who had an open shooting lane. He also helped the Rangers successfully navigate a penalty kill late in the first period. Sullivan noted that the Devils had offensive zone pressure at times, and "I thought Dylan made some timely saves in those scenarios."
The Devils opened the scoring just over eight minutes into the second period. Meier's pass found Dennis Cholowski, who then fed Nico Hischier. Hischier's shot deflected off Urho Vaakanainen and into the net. After Anton Blidh tied the game, Meier scored in the final minute of the second period to put the Devils back in the lead.
In a condensed preseason schedule, Garand's brief three-game appearance in the 2025-26 season, where he posted a .948 save percentage and a 1.62 goals-against average, may not be enough to prevent him from being placed on waivers. Alternatively, it could lead the Rangers to carry three goaltenders into the season. For the duration of Monday's game, however, Garand continued to make his case for the backup position.
"We’re trying to give them an opportunity to make an impression," Sullivan stated regarding Garand's full game appearance. "And so given the nature of the shortened training camp, less games, we just felt it was the right thing to do."
In other training camp news, forward Adam Sykora and defenseman Vincent Iorio are being evaluated for lower-body injuries. Sykora exited the game midway through the first period after appearing to favor his right leg following a hit in the corner.
The Rangers also announced they will wear a Garden of Dreams Foundation patch as their official team patch this season, replacing the "Game 7" patch from the 2025-26 season that honored Mark Messier.