The Tampa Bay Lightning goalie made a save on Los Angeles Kings forward Anze Kopitar on Saturday, grabbing a tough-angle shot attempt with his glove. No big deal, until you realize he caught the puck sight unseen behind his back.
The anticipation of Vasilevskiy, who leads the NHL in wins and shutouts and is third in save percentage (minimum 18 games), on the play was otherworldly. Watching the replay, you can tell he put his glove in position before Kopitar even let the puck fly. But as the all-star admitted, luck was also a factor.
"To be honest I didn't see anything," Vasilevskiy said. "There was a defenseman right in front of me and in the last moment I saw the blade of Kopitar and realized I didn't have enough time to be square to the puck so I made a decision to turn the other way and got lucky."
Sure it is better to be lucky than good, but it is best to be both.
"I just coached in the NHL All-Star Game and saw the best of the best do some remarkable things and that save topped it. That puts you in awe, that one," Lightning coach Jon Cooper said.
"Definitely one of the best saves I've ever seen live and one of the top saves of the season," Lightning forward Steven Stamkos said.
Fans in attendance gave their goalie a huge ovation after seeing the replay on the stadium scoreboard. And it was well earned.
Kopitar, on the other hand, had some advice for the man who foiled his near goal.
"I told him to go buy a lottery ticket today," Kopitar said.
- NHL.com Correspondent Corey Long contributed to this report
