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Preds’ Hutton thwarts Canucks

carterhuttongetty

James OBrien

The Vancouver Canucks were upset with their lack of scoring and inability to defend a lead after a 2-1 loss to the Nashville Predators, but what about the guy who was making those saves?

It’s not Devan Dubnyk or Pekka Rinne who’s suddenly on a bit of a hot streak for Nashville. Instead, it’s been Carter Hutton, a goalie who Barry Trotz trashed for what he believed was a soft goal earlier in January.

At this point, the Predators have little choice but to ride out Hutton’s run, as Dubnyk has only managed to play in one ugly game since being traded to Nashville. Hutton now has a four-game winning streak, including three victories since Dubnyk came to town.

Jan. 14 (before Dubnyk): 22 out of 24 saves for win
Jan. 16: 27 out of 30 saves for win
Jan. 20: 35 out of 36 saves for win
Tonight: 33 out of 34 save for win

In a weird way, it reminds one of a mini-run Dubnyk made once Ilya Bryzgalov became available to play for the Oilers:

Nov. 16: 33 out of 35 saves for a win
Nov. 19: 14-save shutout for win
Nov. 21: 24 out of 25 saves for win

One could chalk up both situations to small sample sizes, but it also reinforces this season’s growing theme of there being little safety in assuming much of anything when it comes to goaltending.

Still, the Canucks view this as their failure rather than Hutton’s triumph, as Roberto Luongo stated.

“We have to protect leads,” Luongo said. “This is a tough one to lose.”

Follow James O’Brien @cyclelikesedins