Andrei Vasilevskiy was not in the dressing room following a 5-2 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Monday. But the snapped-in-half stick lying in the hallway was all you needed to know about what kind of night it had been for the Tampa Bay goalie.
It started funny enough, with Vasilevskiy giving Morgan Rielly a snow shower to the delight of Prime Video, which was broadcasting not only the game but also the warmups.
Rielly, who had been stretching at center ice at the time, didn’t look amused as Vasilevskiy skated right up to him and put on the brakes, delivering a cloud of snow to the defenseman’s face. But life comes as you fast. And it wasn’t long before the Leafs had the last laugh, pumping four goals on 14 shots past Vasilevskiy.
Moran Rielly didn’t seem to appreciate the Vasilevskiy snow shower. pic.twitter.com/lnt3nZxGNg
— David Alter (@dalter) October 21, 2024
None of them looked all that great.
This wasn’t the Vasilevskiy that Maple Leafs fans are used to seeing. There were no highlight-reel saves. He couldn’t even make all the easy saves. Midway through the second period, with Toronto leading 4-1, Vasilevskiy was mercifully pulled.
“Every time we made an error, they took advantage of it,” Lightning coach Jon Cooper told reporters post-game. “It’s just one of those nights. I look at Pacioretty’s goal, and I think that’s kind of how the night went for us.”
Max Pacioretty has his second goal as a member of the @MapleLeafs! ✌️
📺: @SportsOnPrimeCA ➡️ https://t.co/93veFI9jrZ pic.twitter.com/2t1vyV472w
— NHL (@NHL) October 22, 2024
It certainly wasn’t Vasilevskiy’s night. He mishandled a puck on one of the goals. He was beat between the legs on another. And he seemed to blindly wave at another shot.
And yet, pulling him still wasn’t an easy decision. It never is.
The remnants of Vasilevskiy’s night in Toronto pic.twitter.com/WFLhtgAemX
— Michael Traikos (@Michael_Traikos) October 22, 2024
Since making his debut in 2014, the former Vezina Trophy winner had been taken out of the game just 12 times. During a first-round series a couple of years ago, Vasilevskiy reportedly refused to leave his net in a 7-2 loss in Game 2 against the Leafs, with Cooper telling reporters, “That’s why he’s the best.”
On Monday, however, there was no argument.
“Listen, it looked like one of those nights,” said Cooper, who didn’t say whether Vasilevskiy would get the start against the New Jersey Devils on Tuesday. “I probably could count on one hand how many times I’ve pulled him in our career together. But (backup goalie Jonas Johansson) hadn’t played all year, and it was time to get him in and give our guy a rest.”
Every team in the NHL plays tomorrow night.
The #NJDevils are one of the two teams lucky enough to face an opponent who also played tonight.
Andrei Vasilevskiy is in net for the Tampa Bay Lightning vs the Toronto Maple Leafs so he likely won’t face the Devils.
Not horrible.
— Vinnie Parise (@VinnieParise) October 22, 2024
With the loss, Vasilevskiy now has a 3-2-0 record this season, with a 3.14 goals-against average and a .878 save percentage. It’s early. But in his previous game, he also gave up five goals to the Senators. And considering he’s coming off a not-so-Vasilevskiy season last year and just turned 30, there has to be concern.
Just don’t expect to find any of it inside Tampa Bay’s room.
“We let him out to dry,” said Lightning captain Victor Hedman. “He’s the best goalie in the world, but he can’t stop everything. So we got to do better.”
Get the latest news and trending stories right to your inbox by subscribing to The Hockey News newsletter here. And share your thoughts by commenting below the article on THN.com or by visiting our forum.
Related: Will The Toronto Maple Leafs Eventually Move Ryan Reaves And David Kampf?
News Summary:
- Vasilevskiy Pulled After Trolling Maple Leafs: 'I Probably Could Count On One Hand How Many Times I’ve Pulled Him'
- Check all news and articles from the latest NHL updates.