DeSmith comes up big for Canucks in Game 3 to take series lead

NASHVILLE -- Rick Tocchet said watching the Nashville Predators dominate the first five minutes of the first period of Game 3 of the Western Conference First Round series against his Vancouver Canucks on Friday gave him all the answer he needed when it came to how his goalie, Casey DeSmith, would play.

"I just thought Casey, especially the first half the first period, I think one of the coaches said, 'Casey looks good tonight,'" Tocchet said. "You can just tell that he had it.

"I think a couple of saves there, he just looked big. He wasn't side to side, flopping, and I think that really gave good confidence to the team. They had a couple of chances, a couple of pushes, and Casey was right on the crease."

DeSmith had it all game, making 29 saves in the Canucks' 2-1 win at Bridgestone Arena to give Vancouver a 2-1 lead in the best-of-7 series.

It also was the first victory in the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the 32-year-old and came one game after he made 12 saves in a 4-1 loss in Game 2 on Tuesday.

"Couldn't come at a better time," DeSmith said. "I was really disappointed with the result the other night. I thought the team played great the other night and didn't get the result they deserved. Tonight, I thought we really brought it and we earned that one. So, it means a lot."

DeSmith has been pushed into the starting role with No. 1 goalie Thatcher Demko out week to week because of an undisclosed injury sustained during Game 1 of the series. 

That will continue with Game 4 in Nashville on Sunday (5 p.m. ET; MAX, truTV, TBS, BSSO, SN, TVAS), and potentially for much longer with no timeframe set for Demko to return.

"Obviously to step in and come up with a performance like that, so timely, is really big for us," said forward J.T. Miller, who had a goal and assist. "We always talk about how much confidence we have in him, and he showed us today. He gets his chance, he belongs and very happy for him."

DeSmith has earned that level of praise by playing so well this season in a difficult role. Being a backup to an All-Star like Demko has put playing time at a premium. Until Demko sustained a knee injury March 9 that kept him out for five weeks, he started just 18 of Vancouver's first 66 games.

Having the proper mindset and positive attitude with limited playing time is key. 

"I think it's his personality," Tocchet said. "He's not an uptight guy. He always has a smile on his face. I think it's infectious when he comes in. Even if he has a tough night or if things don't go his way, he comes in, spends hours or whatever with [director of goaltending Ian Clark] on the ice, never complains. His demeanor is just great for that role."

It certainly was right Friday. He only had to make five saves in the first period, but the early pressure, plus having to help kill three Nashville power plays, was just what he needed to get him through the rest of the game.

"It's always better to get in the game early as a goalie," DeSmith said. "Even if they don't get shots, a little bit of zone time, get moving around the zone, see the puck, find it through traffic, stuff like that. Just calms you down a little bit."

It also calmed his teammates.

"I wouldn't necessarily say loose, I would say probably just more confident in the sense of like, OK, we just need to make the play that's there, we don't need to force anything, we don't need to take away every shot," defenseman Ian Cole said. "We can give up outside shots, we can limit how dangerous those chances we give up are, then our goalie will make the save.

"So, it's more of a confidence thing than anything. We have all the confidence in the world in Casey."

DeSmith made 11 saves in the second period and stopped 13 of 14 shots in the third period, including all three he faced in the final 3:12 after Luke Evangelista scored to cut it to 2-1 at 16:48.

Vancouver’s 30 blocked shots certainly helped, but DeSmith made all the important saves needed as Vancouver grew its lead through the first two periods.

"We expected a push right out of the gate," said forward Brock Boeser, who scored in the second period to make it 2-0. "We knew we just had to stay patient and stick in there, and Casey made some big saves for us tonight. Like 'Millsy' said, he's an important piece for us and we're just happy for him tonight."

Vancouver will need DeSmith to stay worthy of that starting role moving forward, in the short term and potentially longer, but there's no lack of trust from his teammates.

"We have all the faith in the world in Casey and what he can do," Cole said. "He's been a rock for us when we've needed him. You see tonight how calm, cool, collected he can be. He can make all the saves and we've just got to do a great job helping him. I thought we did a pretty good job of that tonight."