Tuesday, 4 a.m.
The world has tossed a lot of superlatives at Andrei Vasilevskiy lately.
Once again, he has healed. Once again, he is dominant. Once again, he is the Big Cat.
Vasilevskiy’s 300th win last week, followed immediately by his 36th career shutout, has put Vasilevskiy back into the headlines. His health problems of a year ago seem to be over.
And from here, you wonder:
Where will he stop?
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By now, you are aware that no one in the history of hockey has won 300 games faster than Vasilevskiy has. He is 30 years old, and he is riding a streak of seven straight 30-win seasons. So how many wins can he get? 400? 500? 600?
Considering that goalies often play into their 40s, it’s anyone’s guess.
Oh, let’s be honest. The bad games for Vasilevskiy seem to come more often than they once did. But that’s not unusual either. Heck, Martin Brodeur, who won more games in goal than anyone (691) also lost 397 games. He played until he was 42. Marc-Andre Fleury, still playing at 40, has lost 329.
Vasilevskiy has lost just 129 times. No won in NHL history who has won more has lost less.
So break it down by the year. Vasilevskiy is a good bet to win 30 a season (he won 44 in 2017-2018). So if he can play another 10 years, that’s going to get him to 600 or so, maybe more.
That would put him in the all-time top four with Brodeur, Fleury and Patrick Roy (551). It would pass the 11 goalies who have won 400 or more and the 23 who have won more than 301.
Of course, injuries happen. Old age happens. Franchise fortunes happen. Nothing is guaranteed.
But perhaps it’s time that Tampa appreciated Vasilevskiy all over again. Of the all-time goalies’ list, he’s 18th in save percentage. He’s 56th in shutouts. Overall, he’s saved 13,620 shots.
Maybe that’s why Lightning fans expect so much of Vasilevskiy. Every night, a shutout is expected. Every night, a victory is promised.
Still, he’s good enough to carry his team most nights.