The Goalie Battle In The Eastern Conference Final
from Joe Smitgh of The Athletic,
“Game on.”
That’s exactly what Andrei Vasilevskiy said he thought after watching the Rangers beat the Hurricanes in Game 7 Monday night.
It’s also the approach as Vasilevskiy heads into the highly-anticipated showdown with Rangers’ Igor Shesterkin, the likely Vezina Trophy winner, in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference final, which begins Wednesday.
Vasilevskiy is the standard-bearer, one of the best all time when it comes to the playoffs. “He’s the best goalie in the world right now,” Shesterkin said. “It will be a battle.”
Vasilevskiy has been the main trump card, the equalizer as the Lightning go for a historic three-peat. How Shesterkin performs will go a long way in determining whether the Rangers can end Tampa Bay’s reign.
“He’s the only guy going that can stand toe to toe with (Vasilevskiy),” said Ray Ferraro, the former NHLer and current analyst for ESPN. “He’s incredible. He’s so fast. He reads the play well. Even with all these acrobatic saves he makes, most of the time the puck hits him in the chest. He’s in position all the time. He handles the puck really well.
continued (paid)...
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