LAS VEGAS — Rod Brind’Amour’s incredulous reaction to a reporter’s question is what makes the subject of this column so credible.
The sobering morning after one of the most intoxicating Stanley Cup Final games ever played, the head coach of the Carolina Hurricanes was asked if he could glean positives from a series that his club only trails 2-1 in games and 13-12 in total goals.
“That’s a really weird question,” Brind’Amour said, visibly flinching over Sunday’s Zoom meeting.
The coach believes his team was “one shot away” from winning games 1 and 3 and leading this potential all-timer 3-0. So, yeah, there are “a ton of positives,” Brind’Amour replied.
Then he shook his head and (accidentally?) muttered his internal monologue aloud: “What game they’re watching?”
Nah, we’re right with you, Rod.
We are watching a series in which every save — or coach’s challenge to uphold or erase a save — matters.
This is why the first legitimate goaltending debate of the Hurricanes’ otherwise cruisy postseason is so compelling.
Stick with the guy who got you this far, the 36-year-old Frederik Andersen? Or flip to the younger, fresher Brandon Bussi, who was charged with Game 3’s loss but had the superior performance?
Brind’Amour said he doesn’t anticipate “a lot” of lineup changes for Tuesday’s critical Game 4. He also did not use the opportunity to double down on Andersen’s status as his preferred netminder in this series.
“We’ll talk about that after practice tomorrow,” Brind’Amour said. “But I don’t make any decisions now. We’ll see how guys are feeling and stuff like that.”
Andersen came into Round 4 hot, a Conn Smythe contender even. But the great Dane has started twice as many losing efforts as he did throughout Rounds 1, 2, and 3 combined.
His save percentages this series: .783, .885, .750.
Andersen has now played five games against Vegas this season. He’s won once. His goals against are three, five, five, three and four. (Those numbers, of course, don’t include the three pucks that crossed Andersen’s line but got called back, correctly.)
“You obviously don’t want to give up some of the chances we’ve given up. But overall, I thought he’s been fine. You ask him to make the saves that he’s got to make, and I think he’s done that,” Brind’Amour said, defending better than his Canes in Period 2, which ended Andersen’s night before the halfway mark of a double-OT epic.
“A couple bad bounces; they are what they are. He’s been solid for us. Buss came in and was solid for us, so that’s got to continue.”
Andersen — whose 13 playoff wins are nearing the 16 he registered in his rocky regular season — also took a blow to the head from a crease-crashing Ivan Barbashev Saturday that apparently did not bother the concussion spotter.
There is both a health and performance element at play here.
“Different moments have been good and a little scrambly at times. But, yeah, just continuing to try to find a way to make that next save,” Andersen assessed his play prior to Game 3, his lone media availability since the puck dropped. “We’ve had the same mentality as a team, where there’s going to be ups and downs throughout the series and playoffs.”
An extremely well-rested Bussi, who hadn’t seen action since April 14, came in cold under pressure Saturday and was stellar, posting a .947 in 45:26 before Shea Theodore’s bank shot off the end-boards froze the clock.
Bussi was in the net for all four of Carolina’s rally goals and stoned Conn Smythe favourite Mitch Marner with his right-handed glove on a critical third-period penalty shot.
(Sidenote: Marner said he didn’t realize Carolina had made a goalie change, and the glove-side switch was a surprise. Shame on the Vegas coaching staff? Kind of an important detail to share on the bench.)
“(Bussi) gave a little boost. He made a great save on Marner there, gave us a chance. Tough break. Hate it for him because he was playing great. That’s hockey,” Brind’Amour said of Theodore’s funky winner. “We got a couple days to reassess how we’re going to go about the next game. But I give him credit for coming in. He played well. I hate that’s the goal that kind of ended it, because there’s nothing he can do. It’s just a bad break, but he was great.”
So great, Bussi deserves the Game 4 start. No offence to Andersen.
The Hurricanes haven’t been a one-goalie team for years, and Bussi gives a refreshed look for everyone. Albeit in the case of an emergency.
Prophetically, Brind’Amour hoped he wouldn’t have to use Bussi at all this postseason.
“If we do, there’s something going wrong,” the coach said, between Games 1 and 2. “But he’s more than capable. You’re one play away from making a huge impact, and he definitely has the right mindset for it.”
Well, something is wrong.
As resilient as the Hurricanes are, clawing back from a 1-3 deficit feels far-fetched against the veteran, road-ready Golden Knights. Bussi gives them the best shot to win Game 4.
Andersen was a major reason the Hurricanes won three rounds. Take a bow. Give him props.
But when you’re one shot away, do you want to dress the third-best goalie of this series in charge of stopping that puck?
“Obviously, everyone wants to play,” Bussi told reporters. “But Fred’s been an absolute rock. He’s been the backbone of our team. He’s why we’re where we are at this point.”
Just as Bussi’s 31-6-2 record this season is why Carolina earned a home-ice advantage they’ve now lost, and why Bussi’s relief performance in Game 3 pushed the thing to a fifth period.
It’s time for the lefty to tap gloves with the righty.
“Everyone is a main reason why we’re here,” Bussi said. “You can’t forget that. I’m fortunate to be in Raleigh and to be a Hurricane.
“You never know what’s going to happen.”