Goalies seem like they’ve been dropping like flies lately, but at least they’re (mostly) doing so in the line of duty.
From Tuukka Rask to Niklas Backstrom, making saves has become a dangerous proposition. The Tampa Bay Lightning must be biting their nails regarding the status of Mathieu Garon, who seemed to tweak something in the first period of tonight’s game against the Ottawa Senators.
If Garon ends up being sidelined anywhere near as long as Rask and Backstrom, the Lightning will be forced to turn to someone who should have been their starting goalie in the first place: Dwayne Roloson.
The 42-year-old goalie has been an absolute disaster this season, with sub-NHL individual numbers (.880 save percentage, 3.76 GAA) and an 8-12-2 record.
That being said, his up-and-down career’s best moments seem to come when people expect little of him, so maybe he’ll provide one more burst of magic to help Tampa Bay continue its improbable playoff push.
Of course, this could all be a false alarm, but other teams haven’t been so lucky lately.