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EspañolSafe to say, Andrei Vasilevskiy is not having a great night.
The three-time Stanley Cup champ got the pull on Saturday night against the Buffalo Sabres after allowing five goals on 14 shots.
Per Sportsnet Stats, it’s his quickest hook since Dec. 29, 2017, against the Philadelphia Flyers.
The Lightning dug themselves a hole in the first period, with goals from Rasmus Dahlin, Tage Thompson and two goals from Josh Norris sending Tampa Bay to the first intermission down four.
Still, head coach Jon Cooper chose to stick with his perennial Vezina candidate for the second period, only pulling him in favour of Jonas Johansson after Sabres rookie Zach Metsa scored under two minutes into the middle frame.
One lacklustre performance doesn’t take away from the otherwise successful season Vasilevskiy is having on the Eastern Conference-leading Lightning. In 38 games, the 31-year-old Russian has 28 wins, a .921 save percentage and a 2.11 goals-against average.
The Sabres, meanwhile, have been playing themselves into post-season contention, currently sitting second in the Atlantic Division — just behind the Lightning.
