VANCOUVER -- The Vancouver Canucks aren't announcing which goalie will start Game 5 of the Western Conference First Round against the Nashville Predators at Rogers Arena on Tuesday (10 p.m. ET; TVAS, SNE, SNO, SNP, BSSO, TBS, MAX) with a chance to close out the best-of-7 series.
"Game time," Canucks coach Rick Tocchet said Tuesday when asked who would start. "I usually tell you guys but this is playoff stuff, I was told it's game time."
Thatcher Demko, Casey DeSmith and Arturs Silovs have all won to help the Canucks build a 3-1 lead despite being outplayed for long stretches.
"We always talk about in the playoffs it's the next man up mentality and that goes for the goalies too," Canucks forward J.T. Miller said. "They've been unreal. I couldn't imagine being in their spot where you do a lot of sitting around. Even for Casey, he got to play a little bit down the stretch, which I think was big for his confidence but even for him to step into a playoff game out of nowhere and then for Arturs to come in out of nowhere and play, it's unreal. I'm really happy for the guys. Those are big moments of the series."
Demko has not played since Game 1 and is week to week with an undisclosed injury. DeSmith is dealing with an injury and wanted to play in Game 4 on Sunday, but the Canucks decided to take "the safe route" and Nikita Tolopilo dressed as the backup behind Silovs.
"I think both." Tocchet said, when asked if the decision would be based on performance or health. "You look at where that person is injury wise, you talk to the doctor, you talk to the trainer, and then you talk to him. There has to be a three-way conversation and then you just make your decision."
Tocchet did say he expects DeSmith to dress for the game.
"I'll put it this way," he said. "Casey had a good day yesterday, and so I would foresee if he did not play, he'd be a backup."
On Monday, Tocchet was more definitive about not hesitating if he must go back to Silovs, in large part because of how he handled the situation in Game 4. The 23-year-old Latvia-born goalie had only played nine games over two NHL seasons. He was 3-0-1 with a 2.47 goals-against average and .881 save percentage in four games this season but seemed unfazed by the pressure of his first Stanley Cup Playoff start in Nashville on Sunday.
Silovs made 27 saves in a dramatic 4-3 overtime win that included two goals with him on the bench for an extra attacker to tie it late.
"He's a quiet kid but he's got some swagger in him," Tocchet said. "It's hard to explain. He's just ready. You heard him [after Game 4], he said 'ready to shine.' That was kind of fun to hear him say that. … Even when I told [him Saturday] 'you're going to play,' I didn't see that much nervousness. I think he mentioned playing for Latvia [in the 2023 IIHF] World Championship, where he had the whole country on his on his back, so he's been there before in certain scenes."
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2024-04-30 21:56:15Z
CBMiTmh0dHBzOi8vd3d3Lm5obC5jb20vbmV3cy92YW5jb3V2ZXItY2FudWNrcy1zdGFydGluZy1nb2FsaWUtZGVjaXNpb24tZm9yLWdhbWUtNdIBAA
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