By show of hands, how many of you had both Igor Shesterkin and Jonathan Quick on the shelf for the Rangers after the first dozen games this season? If you did, you’d be able to predict the future. Gray’s Sports Almanac not withstanding.

When the Rangers take the ice to face the Wild on Thursday night, they’ll skate without both Shesterkin and Quick. Each is banged up with injuries. Shesterkin has been out since making 26 saves in a win over the Hurricanes on Nov. 2. Quick will miss his first game with an upper-body injury. He’s listed as day-to-day.

It’s been the steady play of both goalies that has the Rangers off to a 9-2-1 start in first place. They lead the Metropolitan Division with 19 points. Not the most explosive offense in the league, they’ve gotten superb goaltending from Shesterkin and Quick, who has turned back the clock to his Kings’ days when he helped them win two Stanley Cups.

After Shesterkin went down with an undisclosed injury that the Rangers are being cautious with, Quick made the last two starts against the Wild and Red Wings. He was particularly strong at Minnesota on Nov. 4 making 36 saves to get the Rangers a point in a shootout loss that they weren’t particularly good in.

When the Red Wings pressed their dangerous attack in the third period on Nov. 7, Quick held firm to preserve a 5-3 win on home ice. That was a game where the Rangers were clicking on all cylinders. For two periods, they dominated the Wings by outscoring them 5-0 – taking advantage of an undisciplined opponent who didn’t look ready to play. But Detroit scored three consecutive goals in a much better third to make things interesting.

So far, the Rangers couldn’t have asked for a better start from Quick. When they signed him in the off-season, there were questions about whether it was the right move. After a shaky preseason, Quick has been outstanding – posting a 3-0-1 record with a 1.77 goals-against-average (GAA), .936 save percentage, and a shutout. He’s supplied the Rangers with consistency to provide them with a backup goalie they can count on.

Without both Shesterkin and Quick, that goaltending will be tested later tonight against the Wild. Instead, it’ll fall on the shoulders of Louis Domingue to get the job done. A journeyman who last played in the NHL with the Penguins during the Rangers’ first round series win in 2022, he’s played with the Hartford Wolf Pack in the American Hockey League (AHL) since then.

After winning 22 games in 2022-23, he’s 3-1-0 with a 1.75 GAA and a .934 save percentage in four games for Hartford this season. The 31-year-old will make his first start for the Rangers tonight. He’s appeared in 142 career NHL games for six different teams, including the Coyotes, Lightning, Devils, Canucks, Flames, and Penguins. The Rangers make it lucky number seven.

With both Shesterkin and Quick unavailable for the game, the Rangers also recalled Dylan Garand. The 21-year-old former 2020 fourth round pick is 3-1-1 with a 2.63 GAA, and .914 save percentage for the Wolf Pack in his second pro season. Given the situation, it’s wiser to go with the more experienced Domingue for now. He’s won 59 NHL games.

It isn’t known how much longer Shesterkin will be out. Hopefully, the Rangers can get their starter back sooner rather than later. They haven’t had to rush him due to the good start. That could bode well over the long haul. Keeping Shesterkin healthy is the key to a successful season. Especially if they’re playing meaningful games next spring.

With the Blue Jackets not visiting Madison Square Garden until Sunday, Nov. 12, that allows Shesterkin and Quick more time to recover from their injuries. The Rangers will have six days off before visiting the Devils on Nov. 18 over a week from now. With that window coming up, the logical decision could be to rest Shesterkin in preparation for a return against the Devils. That would give him over two weeks off.

As for the Rangers, they’ll want to play a more structured game against the Wild. In the first matchup, they jumped out to a 3-0 lead by getting to Wild goalie Filip Gustavsson early. However, a loss of discipline was their undoing. The Wild regained the momentum by using their game-breaking speed and heavy forecheck to dominate play on Nov. 4.

It led to four straight goals. Only a faceoff play that resulted in a Chris Kreider tip-in of an Artemi Panarin shot allowed the Rangers to force overtime. They lost in a shootout.

Rangers coach Peter Laviolette has emphasized stronger play at five-on-five. He was pleased with how his team responded against the Red Wings. Even though they didn’t finish that game well, he liked what he saw.

Laviolette moved Blake Wheeler up to the top line with Mika Zibanejad and Kreider. Kaapo Kakko played on the third line with Nick Bonino and Will Cuylle.

The Rangers are still without Filip Chytil. Vincent Trocheck has moved up to center the second line with Panarin and Alexis Lafreniere. They had some success at even strength on Tuesday, with Trocheck scoring his first goal and Lafreniere setting up Panarin. Trocheck also tallied on the power play, earning the game’s first star.

Barclay Goodrow returned after the birth of his son. He played on the fourth line with Jimmy Vesey and Tyler Pitlick. A key to the Rangers’ eighth ranked penalty kill (86.1 percent), Goodrow helped them keep the Red Wings 0-for-6 on the power play. He also won four of five faceoffs. His versatility comes in handy.

If there’s been a staple to their early success so far, it’s been the steady play of Jacob Trouba. The Rangers’ captain has played well defensively. He leads the team in blocked shots (44) and ranks second in hits (26). Trouba’s gritty play has been praised by Laviolette, who’s also gotten a good start from K’Andre Miller.

Trouba’s defense partner has a goal, and six assists with a plus/minus rating of +7 in 12 games. It’s been his improvement defensively that’s really helped the blue line. Miller has made some nice recoveries and has not been caught out of position as frequently. A welcome change that’s aided his play.

Under Laviolette, there’s more of a commitment to defense. Entering tonight, the Rangers rank third in the league in the fewest goals allowed per game (2.17) and are third in the least shots allowed per game (27.5). Along with a marked improvement in faceoffs (54.9 pct) that has them tied for second in the league, they’re a more detail oriented team that makes life harder on opponents.

For those reasons, that explains why they have 19 points. That’s tied for the third most in the league. With strong special teams that rank in the top 10 and big improvements overall, the Rangers are in a good place. That will allow them to get both their goalies healthy.

It’ll be a good test to see where they are. It’s better to have adversity now than later. Without Adam Fox, they’ll continue to learn more about themselves. It will measure the true character of the team.