If he does not find himself at the top of the individual statistics among goaltenders, Andrei Vasilevskiy once again showed on Sunday why the Tampa Bay Lightning remain serious contenders for the Stanley Cup once again this year.
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The 27-year-old Russian blocked 35 of 36 pucks aimed at him in a 2-1 win against the Canucks in Vancouver. He thus helped his people to put an end to a streak of three defeats.
“Sometimes you play against a world-class goaltender, arguably the best goaltender in the world,” Canucks head coach Bruce Boudreau complimented him after the game, according to The Athletic. We had some very good chances, but we couldn’t beat him.”
overcoming adversity
Vasilevskiy certainly owed one to his teammates. In the four games preceding this one, he allowed at least three goals, for a total of 16 goals.
But overall, the masked man is true to himself this season. He has a 31-11-4 record, a 2.40 goals-against average and a .918 save percentage. His 348 career games, all with the Lightning, have taught him that a bad streak doesn’t make a season.
“I haven’t played my best in the last few games, and I needed a game like this to stand up and help the guys out,” Vasilevskiy said. I’m glad I was able to do that.”
“I feel like every season we have a little streak like that. Nothing crazy, just a few unlucky plays, unlucky rebounds. Through hard work we can overcome [les obstacles].”
In search of a third consecutive Stanley Cup, the Lightning is certainly in a good position. The team was fourth overall in the National League on Monday. And Vasilevskiy showed he was capable of taking his game up a notch in the playoffs, including a Conn-Smythe Trophy to his name.