Goalie rest leading into playoffs tough task for teams to figure

When it comes to finding the ideal balance between rest and rust for goalies heading into the Stanley Cup Playoffs, there is no one-size-fits-all solution that applies.

Some goalies benefit from getting extra rest as they prepare for what they hope will be a long playoff run. Others want to keep playing to maintain their rhythm and timing.
The 2020-21 regular season is scheduled to be completed by May 14 for the Discover Central Division, Honda West Division and MassMutual East Division. The last scheduled game for the Scotia North Division is May 19.
The start date for the playoffs has not been announced.
Whenever the playoffs do start, goaltending coaches will be doing whatever it takes to put their goalies in the best frame of mind.
"You have to know what kind of guys you have under you," said Stephane Waite, who has coached goalies in the NHL for the past 16 seasons.
Waite was Chicago Blackhawks goaltending coach for eight seasons, and was in his eighth season in the same role with the Montreal Canadiens when he was fired March 2.
With the Blackhawks, Waite knew Corey Crawford needed to play to avoid rust. Waite created a schedule each season to keep him sharp for the playoffs, which culminated in Crawford helping the Blackhawks win the Stanley Cup in 2013.
For Carey Price with the Canadiens, rest was more important.
"Some goalies, the more they play the better they are," Waite said. "Like
Corey Crawford
, don't give him a day off. The more he's playing, the better he is. With Carey it's completely opposite. You need to manage his schedule."
Price, who has missed the past 10 games because of a concussion, proved time off isn't necessarily an issue for him during the 2020 postseason. His .936 save percentage in 10 games was the best of his 14-season NHL career, and came despite not skating while the NHL season was paused more than four months due to concerns surrounding the coronavirus.
There were few signs of rust despite playing one exhibition game before the Canadiens upset the Pittsburgh Penguins in the best-of-5 Stanley Cup Qualifiers behind Price's .947 save percentage in four games. He had a .926 save percentage in six games in the Canadiens' loss to the Philadelphia Flyers in the best-of-7 Eastern Conference First Round.
"He was so rested mentally, and more important physically, so for him that was almost a perfect situation," Waite said. "But for some goalies it was tough to get into the playoffs last summer because of the lack of games before."
That helps explain why teams have taken varying approaches to their goalie workloads down the stretch this season.
The Tampa Bay Lightning kept No.1 goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy completely out of back-to-back games against the Detroit Red Wings on May 1-2. Vasilevskiy did not dress as the backup in either of those games before returning to make 20 saves in a 6-2 win against the Dallas Stars on Wednesday. Vasilevskiy leads the NHL in wins (31) and is second in starts (40), behind Connor Hellebuyck (42) of the Winnipeg Jets.

"Whether it's your goaltender or defensemen or forwards, you do what's best for them and we have a pretty good feel for our guys," Lighting coach Jon Cooper said Wednesday. "We've been together quite some time and we've been in these situations before. It's all about trying to make your team be in the best possible position physically and mentally for playoffs."
Cooper said the decision to rest Vasilevskiy was pre-planned and a benefit of clinching a playoff berth early.
Edmonton Oilers coach Dave Tippett plans to get Mike Smith more rest by playing Mikko Koskinen more in the final five games after Smith started 10 of the previous 11. But Tippett has no intention of giving Smith or Koskinen a night off by dressing third goalie Alex Stalock.
"We like to talk about the rhythm of our team, rhythm of our lineup, and those are our two guys," Tippett said. "They want to be involved in every game."
Rhythm is something goalies rely on, but to varying degrees. Some believe they need the feel and timing of games to maintain it. Others benefit more from having enough rest to practice harder and drill down on technical details between starts rather than worrying about their energy level during practice because they're starting too often.
"I think it depends on the type of goaltender you have," Anaheim Ducks goaltending coach Sudarshan Maharaj said. "[Ryan] Miller has a great ramp-up routine after long layoffs as he draws closer to his start date, but I've had goalies that I had to keep the off periods shorter. It's very individual. I think it's based on how the goalie was deployed throughout the season as well, and trying to keep to normal habits, but rest is more important at this stage."
The Vegas Golden Knights have established a routine with their top two goalies that appears to strike a perfect balance between getting enough rest without worrying about rust.
When Marc-Andre Fleury passed Roberto Luongo for third all-time in NHL wins with 490 with a 3-2 overtime win against the Minnesota Wild on Wednesday, it was the 21st straight game he'd alternated starts with Robin Lehner.
It also was the first time in four seasons with Vegas that Fleury, who traditionally plays his best when he plays more, has won seven straight games.
"You don't have to wait too long before you're in net," Fleury said. "I play, get a little bit of rest, practice hard, cheer for 'Lenny' next game and then I can get back at it, so I think it's not too bad because we're playing so often."
Coach Peter DeBoer believes the Golden Knights have benefited from the back-and-forth starts.
"The rhythm for me, I know everyone talks about it, but our schedule has been so condensed that they're both getting in two games a week," DeBoer said. "So I don't think that's an issue. And the fact that we've got a rested guy in there every night at the most important position on the ice has been a huge factor in our record and where we're at right now."
Whether they can continue that rotation in the playoffs is another question. But for now it's helped Vegas stay atop the Honda West Division without having to worry about overworking its goalies.