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It is often said there are times where the goalies steal the spotlight. Today was one of those cases as Niklas Backstrom and Cam Ward had an old fashioned goalie duel for 65:00 before the shootout settled the issue. In the end, Backstom gave up one in the SO as Ward and the Hurricanes came away with another two points in the 2-1 victory in Helsinki, Finland. Cam Ward stopped 41 shots including all three attempts in the SO while Niklas Backstrom stopped 36 shots and 2 of 3 in the extra individual contest of strength or something like that.
Was this a product of back to back games and a lack of execution? Some could argue this. Martin Havlat missed at least two glorious chances I saw and probably another one I did not. He shanked one effort and was kind of slashed on the other as he hit the post. There were some very nice chances by both sides as the defenses were a bit tired to be honest, especially Carolina’s. When Joni Pitkanen plays nearly 30:00, one knows it will be a long night.
Sadly this goaltending duel had to come to an end and this is how it happened.
However this was not the only unexpectedly good performance I saw in the last 24 hours. Let’s throw a spotlight on yes a goaltender who plays for the Philadelphia Flyers. Sergei Bobrovsky is one of the fastest goalies I have seen in some time when it comes to lateral movement. Now I do not have a stopwatch but if you watch how he scrambles in net, it can look pretty cat like. Bobrovsky stopped 29 of 31 shots in a 3-2 win last night in Pittsburgh and was one of the main reasons why Philadelphia spoiled the Penguins’ home opener.
Here is one of his best scrambles of the night and why many think he has the potential to start for a long time in Philadelphia. Now its time for that video.
The goalies have definitely taken some of the spotlight early on. What will happen tonight? Stay tuned. The season is just starting and there are many fantasy stars that will shine. If there are any fantasy hockey questions at all, send us a comment here or an email at stevens8204@gmail.com. Someone will get to it very quick and will always have a straight answer for your needs. Now its off to The Rock for tonight. Will the ZIP line be fantasy studs? It could happen.
