Tuukka Rask has been one of the top goaltenders of the regular season for the past few years but will he ever get his name on the Cup as a starting goalie? He has his name on it already from the 2011 season playing back-up to Tim Thomas. Thomas returned from a hip injury that kept him out of the starting job in 2010 and Rask rose to the occasion helping the Bruins to the Eastern Conference Final where a meltdown of epic proportions happened against Philadelphia. The Bruins blew a 3-0 series lead and then a 3-0 lead in game 7 to keep them from playing for the Cup for one more year.
Since the Cup-winning season, Thomas was bounced out of the first round with the Bruins by Washington. He has taken a hiatus, sat on the Islanders roster to hit the cap floor, been shipped to Florida and Dallas while Rask has risen to the occasion once again.
He’s played phenomenal through the regular season and was part of the President’s Trophy season the Bruins just had. However, the success that Thomas was able to have in the post-season has eluded Rask. The stats are a little skewed as Rask hasn’t played as many games as other goaltenders this playoffs but he led the league in goals against average and save percentage, with 1.99 GAA and .928 SV%. He also recorded two shutouts, equaling that of two-time Cup champion Jonathan Quick.
Last year, en route to a trip to the Stanley Cup final for the second time in three years, Rask also led playoff goaltenders in shutouts and SV%. He was also top four in GAA. However it was another crippling defeat. With just over a minute to play in game six, the Bruins were up 2-1 over the Chicago Blackhawks. Two goals in a 17-second span turned the tables from the Bruins forcing a game seven to the Blackhawks hoisting the Cup on the Garden ice.
This year was more of the same. Another game seven, this time against hated rival Montreal, and another chance for Rask to prove he belongs on the Cup as a starting goaltender. I’ll say that this season didn’t look too bright for the B’s in the playoffs with their defensive core hurting, relying on a lot of young talent to make up for veteran defensemen Adam McQuaid and Dennis Seidenberg being out of the lineup, but Rask was still the last line of defense. Montreal went on to win and Rask and the Bruins are back at the drawing board.
Rask has led the league in shutouts the past two seasons. He’s been in the Vezina conversation all year, and is nominated for the award. He has had all kinds of success in the regular season but for some reason not everything is clicking together when it comes to playoff time. I know that the goalie isn’t the only person on a team that determines winning or losing, but I think we have all seen a team do more than they should because of their goaltending. Is Rask forever going to be known as two U’s two K’s no Cup? At 27 years old there is still plenty of time for the young Finn to achieve the ultimate prize.
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