Rinne was pulled after that goal. He made five saves. It is the fastest a goalie has been pulled in any of the 171 Game 7s in NHL playoff history.
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"I obviously feel very much responsible for our season ending at this point," Rinne said. "Tough. Tough to swallow. Tough to understand. You know, I can't point on anything. Felt good and no injuries, totally healthy and total ups and downs throughout the playoffs. And obviously, you know, the biggest moment of the season, it's a terrible feeling. You let your teammates down, and that's what happened tonight."
Juuse Saros, who had not allowed a goal in 65:11 this postseason, replaced Rinne and made one save in the remaining 9:13 of the period. He allowed one goal in the second period and one in the third, making 14 saves in a 5-1 loss Thursday.
Rinne made 34 saves in a 4-0, Game 6 win at Winnipeg on Monday. He was pulled from Game 1 and Game 5 of this series, each at home, and entered Game 7 with a 2.94 goals-against average and .907 save percentage in these Stanley Cup Playoffs.
The Jets will play the Vegas Golden Knights in the Western Conference Final.
NHL.com correspondent Robby Stanley contributed to this report.*
