With the Madison Square Garden hockey crowd as alive as it had been in weeks, Igor Shesterkin clung to Jacob Markstr\u00f6m\u2019s jersey with his left hand and jabbed. After failing to land a few attempts, the Rangers goalie and his New Jersey Devils counterpart each swung and missed with right hooks.<\/p>\n
But the 30-year-old Shesterkin soon found a rhythm. He landed a flurry of right-handed punches on Markstr\u00f6m\u2019s back, before successfully making contact with a lefty jab. Eventually Markstr\u00f6m lost his balance, and Shesterkin fell to the ice on top of him. Rangers fans, who haven\u2019t had much to cheer about this season, erupted into \u201cI-gor! I-gor!\u201d chants.<\/p>\n
Later that Tuesday night, still dripping with sweat after making 22 saves in a 4-1 victory over New Jersey, Shesterkin gave a special shoutout to explain his dominant performance in the bout.<\/p>\n
\u201cI just want to say thanks to my boxing coach,\u201d he said to reporters with a grin.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s not at all unusual for professional athletes, across many sports, to take boxing lessons for conditioning purposes. NBA stars Damian Lillard and Joel Embiid have been documented in the ring during their respective offseasons, as have quarterbacks Lamar Jackson and Russell Wilson. The Chicago Blackhawks even incorporated classes into their 2023 prospect development camp, while several prominent NHL fighters, including Tom Wilson and Max Domi, have gone in part, no doubt, for the pugilistic pointers.<\/p>\n
Still many assumed Shesterkin was joking \u2014 he often delivers one-line quips during interviews, plus why would a goalie, of all positions, need a boxing coach? But this time, the goalie was perfectly serious. In recent years, he\u2019s stepped out of the crease and into the ring for lessons from Sergey Novikov, a professional boxer and coach based in Miami.<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t know if I could use it in a real fight or not,\u201d Shesterkin told The Athletic.<\/p>\n
Originally from Belarus, the 36-year-old Novikov (whose name is sometimes spelled Siarhei Novikau) won a bronze medal at the 2013 European Amateur Boxing Championships and went on to amass a 14-0 record in professional matches. He\u2019s not retired, but he hasn\u2019t fought since January 2024, either, due to lingering lower-back injuries from a car accident later that year. Training others has become his focus.<\/p>\n
Novikov mostly works with mid-level boxers and beginners. But his work has also brought him into contact with public figures seeking out the sport, including popular streamer IShowSpeed, who has more than 50 million subscribers on YouTube. The coach loves sharing his boxing experience with others \u2014 famous or not \u2014 and believes in its benefits.<\/p>\n
\u201c(Boxing) is good for health, for body, for mind,\u201d he says. \u201cYou stress less. Everyone should try it at least a few times.\u201d<\/p>\n
Several years ago, working out of the popular Miami gym BOXR, Novikov met Shesterkin through fellow coach Shota Tchigladze, who had started giving lessons to the goalie after getting introduced by one of the strength and conditioning trainers. Shesterkin often spends offseason time in Miami when not in his native Russia, and while in south Florida he does strength and conditioning work at BOXR. Novikov began coaching Shesterkin whenever Tchigladze, a native of the country Georgia and a fellow Russian speaker, went out of town.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs nice as he looks, he has this killer inside him,\u201d Tchigladze says of Shesterkin. \u201cIn boxing especially, we don\u2019t judge a book by its cover.\u201d<\/p>\n
Shesterkin has performed a variety of drills under Novikov\u2019s tutelage. During one lesson, the coach held up mitts for the goalie to swing at. Shesterkin, his face locked in focus, stood barefoot in the ring, ducking away from Novikov\u2019s mitts before bursting into right-left-right punching combinations. Novikov worked with him on how to use his full body to deliver more forceful punches, and the two have even sparred against each other.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s already at a good level for a beginner,\u201d says Novikov, who saw Shesterkin play hockey in person at the 2026 Winter Classic in Miami. \u201cHe\u2019s not pro (level) or amateur even, but for a goalkeeper \u2014 for anyone \u2014 he\u2019s very good.\u201d<\/p>\n
The 6-foot-1 Shesterkin\u2019s confidence jumped out to Novikov during sparring, as he didn\u2019t seem to have any fear going against his 6-5, 220-pound coach. Novikov, not much of a hockey fan before meeting Shesterkin, once asked his pupil whether goalies ever fought. Shesterkin said it rarely happened. But, he added, \u201cWho knows? If it happens, I want to be ready.\u201d<\/p>\n
Heading into this season, the NHL hadn\u2019t had a goalie fight since Mike Smith and Cam Talbot dropped their gloves in February 2020. But in the past three months, three pairs of netminders have squared off: San Jose\u2019s Alex Nedeljkovic versus Florida\u2019s Sergei Bobrovsky, Boston\u2019s Jeremy Swayman versus Tampa Bay\u2019s Andrei Vasilevskiy, and now Shesterkin versus Markstr\u00f6m.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd (Shesterkin) was ready,\u201d Novikov says.<\/p>\n
In the third period Tuesday, one night after Madison Square Garden hosted \u201cWWE Raw,\u201d Shesterkin took objection to New Jersey forward Paul Cotter making contact with him in the crease. He joined the ensuing scrum and shoved Cotter. Markstr\u00f6m, wanting to spark his team while trailing 4-1, streaked down into the Rangers\u2019 zone. He threw off his catcher and blocker gloves, and Shesterkin did the same.<\/p>\n
Shesterkin\u2019s intensity and at-times fiery demeanor are nothing new to his teammates. They were overjoyed by the bout postgame, telling Shesterkin that he \u201cprobably won by points,\u201d the netminder recounted. They also surrounded him for a group photo in New York\u2019s dressing room, with defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov raising Shesterkin\u2019s left hand as though he were a victorious prizefighter.<\/p>\n
Early in the bout against Markstr\u00f6m, said Shesterkin, his mind briefly returned to his boxing lessons. But, he added, \u201cIn one second I realized \u2018Nothing works right now.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Instinct took over, which was no surprise to Novikov.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen (a fight) is happening I think nobody thinks about what (they\u2019re) doing,\u201d he says. \u201cIt\u2019s just going automatically.\u201d<\/p>\n
Still, the coach believes preparation creates better instincts, whether for professional boxers or hockey goalies.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m happy for his performance,\u201d says Novikov, who posted an Instagram video<\/a> with a side-by-side of a Shesterkin training session and the fight against Markstr\u00f6m. \u201cHe looked very confident, doing a jab and a right overhand. Things he tried in our boxing sessions.\u201d<\/p>\n Like Novikov, as well as the Rangers, Tchigladze was pleased by Shesterkin\u2019s performance. He felt pride watching him fight.<\/p>\n \u201cThank God he trained,\u201d Tchigladze says. \u201cI have to start promoting my boxing to hockey teams now.\u201d<\/p>\n