The games in St. Paul and Pittsburgh again showed the whole world how great the role of the individual is in history, but there are still irreplaceables in sports.
For all his burning desire, John Cooper couldn’t afford the second day in a row with an interval of less than 19 hours, and even a flight from Detroit to Pittsburgh, to send Vasilevsky out the door. Andrey gave the game of the year against the Red Wings (3: 0) on Saturday, where he set a personal record for reflected shots in a dry game: 45.
Yes, this happened during the current championship, but there was a different situation. Before the reception in Tampa, Montreal (12/29) and the Rangers (12/30) had seven days off from the Lightning! As a result, the hosts took charge twice: 4: 1 (Vasilevsky saved 25 shots) and 2: 1 (45) from penalties. Something similar happened during a trip through Canada on January 20 and 22 in Edmonton and Calgary, where the second meeting was in the afternoon, so the delay to step on the ice was less than 40 hours. However, even then, Lightning had a four-day hiatus upon returning home. The Oilers and Flames lost 3:5 (Vasilevsky saved 29 shots) and 3:6 (35).
How painful it was to look at the coach from Tampa, and even more so at the sad eyes under the mask of the 37-year-old goalkeeper from the guests Elliott, when at the end of the second half, with the score 2: 2, the pucks fell into his net. Almost all the shots of the “penguins” reached the goal: from the 36th to the 40th minute the hosts scored five goals! The Canadian veteran simply swam away, but Cooper was forced to suffer in silence. To throw Vasilevsky under the tanks in a losing game, who didn’t have time to recover from the execution in Detroit, is to kill the goaltending line entirely. But the day after tomorrow to fight “Florida” in the southern derby.
In the last third, Pittsburgh, according to the unwritten laws of the NHL, did not finish off the opponent who threw the white flag, graciously allowing him to win the period – 1:0. As a result – 7:3 in favor of the “penguins”. And our Gino started this whole chase, when in the 27th minute he jumped out of the penalty area, he ran towards the lonely Elliott and restored the balance. Malkin also has a transfer under his belt. Kucherov got the same 2 (1+1) points, but with a hole in the net you can’t count on anything.
After a slight decline in the first half of February, Minnesota consistently scores points in six rounds, five wins. The Wilds, who were out of the playoff zone for some time, are already sharing fourth and fifth places in the West with Edmonton!
The reason is simple – Kaprizov was breaking up. Today Cyril did everything himself. After two periods, the hosts burned out in a duel with Colon – 0:2. It was then that the Siberian took the tug. In five minutes, he equalized the score, and 20 seconds before the end of overtime, he escaped from the custody of Godro and Marchenko and gave Minnesota a super strong victory – 3: 2! To a natural hat-trick, Kaprizov added the club’s season record for powerplay goals: 16.
In Winnipeg, Varlamov played a clean sheet for the second time this season, reflecting all 23 shots, and Romanov scored the second championship goal. The Islanders defeated Czech Jets goaltender Rittich four times. Semyon entered the frame for the first time since February 19, when he conceded six goals in Boston: 2: 6.
“Sometimes the cookies are easy to come by, sometimes they are very, very hard,” said the hero of the evening. “I really wanted to play today. Therefore, it was not difficult for me to maintain focus.
The partners helped the Russian a lot. So, in the first third they allowed Varlamov to be bothered only once! He now has 38 crackers in his career and 14 in four years with the Islanders. Ilya Sorokin left the New Yorkers’ gates intact 15 times in three seasons.
Toronto goalkeeper Ilya Samsonov won his 22nd championship victory in Seattle – 5:1. It was printed already in the 4th minute, but then only the guests scored. Probably, in Washington they are very sorry that they so easily let the citizen of Magnitogorsk go to Canada. The Maple Leafs, unlike the Capitals, are likely to make the playoffs.
“Capital”, by the way, again on the shield, and defeated a direct competitor for a place in the Buffalo Eight Cup – 4:7. The only joy is the first goal in February and Ovechkin scored the 33rd in the championship. However, at number 99 he still walks and walks…
