GREENBURGH, NY – Barclay Goodrow, like everyone else with Tampa Bay Lightning and beyond, has promoted Andrei Vasilevskiy as the best goalkeeper in the world, the only one you would want on your net in the Stanley Cup playoffs.
Oh, how this story has changed for Goodrow.
“I’ll be wearing‘ Shesty ’all day,” he said.
Of course, he will wear Igor Shesterkin. Goodrow is in his first season as a striker with the New York Rangers after winning the Stanley Cup with Lightning for the past two years, so he has to go with her husband.
Nor is it that anyone can say he was wrong, especially considering the season the Rangers goalkeeper has spent and how he has played in the playoffs so far.
We will soon know if Goodrow is right and if Vasilevsky will have to give the best nickname in the world to Shesterkin.
The goalie clash is the main story and the point of discussion for the Eastern Conference final between the Rangers and the Lightning. Game 1 is at Madison Square Garden on Wednesday (8pm ET; ESPN, SN, CBC, TVAS).
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“The two best goalkeepers in the world play against each other,” Rangers striker Chris Kreider said.
Vasilevsky is the starter, the consecutive Stanley Cup winner, as close to a safe thing as there is in the NHL.
“We know what we have in our man,” Lightning captain Steven Stamkos said.
Vasilevsky came out of a four-game sweep of the Florida Panthers in the Second Round of the Eastern Conference, when he allowed three goals in 154 shots for an average of 0.75 goals against and a save percentage of 0.981. He is 8-3 with a GAA of 2.22 and a save percentage of 0.932 in two rounds this postseason. He won the Conn Smythe Trophy last season and was voted MVP of the playoffs, when he was 16-7 with five whites, a GAA of 1.90 and a savings percentage of 0.937.
Video: FLA @ TBL, Gm3: Vasilevsky saves Mamin
Since the 2020 playoffs, Vasilevskiy is 42-17 with seven whites, a 1.96 GAA and a .932 savings percentage. He has quickly become one of the best goalkeepers in playoff history, with a .925 savings percentage tied for third with Dominik Hasek, Tuukka Rask and Jean-Sebastien Gigeure among the goalkeepers who have played at least 50 games. .
“It’s the same as usual,” Vasilevsky said. “I have to take a step back and show them my best game.”
Shesterkin does too. It should be expected by now, as his work has put him in the best conversation in the world. He was 36-13-4 with a GAA of 2.07, a savings rate of 0.935 and six whites in the regular season and is a finalist for the Hart Trophy and the Vezina Trophy which were given to the most valuable player and best goalkeeper from the NHL, respectively.
Shesterkin has never been a Stanley Cup winner like Vasilevskiy, but it is the main reason the Rangers are halfway through, winning eight of their 14 playoff starts with a GAA of 2.68 and a savings rate of 0.928. . He has a 7-3 record with a GAA of 2.09 and a savings percentage of 0.939 from Game 5 of the first round against the Pittsburgh Penguins, including a 5-0 with a savings rate of 0.930 in elimination games.
“Something underestimated is how he understands the game,” Rangers striker Ryan Strome said. “His hockey IQ is, I would say, one of the highest on our team and I don’t think he ever said that about a goalkeeper on my team, with all due respect. What I mean by that is that he’s able to read. to play so smartly and anticipate where the record will be and that helps a lot, obviously. And his ability to play with the record is amazing. “
Video: NYR @ CAR, Gm7: Shesterkin blocks a time with his toe
But Shesterkin is playing with Vasilevskiy. The Lightning goalkeeper is 17 months older (Vasilevsky was born on July 25, 1994; Shesterkin was born on December 30, 1995) and has already played 265 more regular season games (365-100) and 77 more playoff games ( 92-15). . She won the Vezina Trophy in 2018-19 and was a finalist three more times, though not this season.
Of course, Vasilevsky has also won the Stanley Cup twice and the Conn Smythe Trophy.
“Vasilevsky has his history, he speaks for himself,” Rangers defender Adam Fox said. “I think Shesty too. What he’s done this year is incredibly impressive. No doubt two good goalkeepers come together and I have a lot of faith in Shesty.”
In addition, they are also known. Shesterkin was Russia’s third goalkeeper at the 2017 IIHF World Championships. Vasilevskiy was No. 1.
“He was on the bench,” the Rangers goalkeeper said, smiling.
On Wednesday he will be on the other side, trying to push the Rangers over the two defensive strokes and end the streak of 10 consecutive Lightning victories, and perhaps grab the best nickname in the world at the same time.
The only problem, Vasilevsky has shown zero signs of letting go.
“He’s the best goalkeeper in the world right now,” Shesterkin said.