Saturday, October 14, 2017

Goalie Announcements (Oct 14)

And then there were four teams left to qualify for Week Three in the survivor pool and the weekend is limited to a solid dose of Saturday action and a very minimal Sunday evening as well.

Brian, Clayton, Troy and Wes are your four teams that have yet to put up a win and at an early glance, for some of those four teams, starts are really going to come at a premium, if at all.

Let's count it down!

Keith Kinkaid (N/A) versus Ondrej Pavelec (N/A)
Starting with Brian, he doesn't get a start from the Rangers, as they had opted to give Lundqvist the start on Friday night against the Blue Jackets, a game they dropped 3-1.  So, Ondrej Pavelec gets the nod against the high-flying Devils, taking on another non-pool goalie, Keith Kinkaid in the Devils net.  What a waste of a game!

Scott Darling (Clayton) versus Connor Hellebuyck (Neil)
This could have been a key match-up for two survival teams, but it appears that it will only be one, as Clayton gets his only start of the night from Darling and the Hurricanes, while the Jets are going with the hotter hand in Hellebuyck, instead of Troy's Steve Mason.

Roberto Luongo (Stuart) versus Matt Murray (Stacey M.)
A heart-breaker for Troy, as it doesn't appear that his goalies will give him the chance to stay in, barring an injury "miracle" of sorts.  With Luongo getting the nod in Pittsburgh tonight, Troy's number two goalie, James Reimer, will be perched on the bench and Troy is now expected to be eliminated after tonight's action, with no hope for Sunday play.

Anton Khudobin (N/A) versus Louis Domingue (Stuart)
The Boston Bruins are starting back-to-backs tonight in Arizona, which is why Clayton won't get a Bruins start in this one.  It is lost to the non-pool backup goalie, Khudobin, offering up a possible easier start for Stuart, who already has been eliminated from the survivor pool.

Mike Condon (Brian) versus Cam Talbot (Wes)
Oh boy!  Brian has one more kick at the can and it comes late tonight and it comes with an opponent, also looking for survival this week in Wes' number one goalie in Edmonton.  Condon will make his season debut for the Senators, as they are playing on back-to-backs, and it is expected that Talbot will get the nod for the Oilers again, keeping his heavy workload intact.  A pretty big game here.

Mike Smith (Ryan) versus Jacob Markstrom (Wes)
Wes isn't out of options though, when it comes to goalie starts, as he should be getting another start from Markstrom in Vancouver, as the Canucks finish off a 4-game homestand with Calgary in town.  The Flames are on back-to-back nights and they are not going to shy away from their number one goalie, even after getting pulled last night against Ottawa.  Smith gets the nod once again, making this into a top notch game tonight.

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