Wallstedt 'knew I could' be No. 1 goalie for Wild in Stanley Cup Playoffs

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- Jesper Wallstedt started the Stanley Cup Playoffs still in the “pinch-me, am-I-really-here?” phase of his NHL career.

"I don't know if it's the right time to look back at it, but everything this year has been unexpected," the Minnesota Wild rookie goalie told NHL.com before making 43 saves in a 3-2 overtime win against the Dallas Stars in Game 4 of the Western Conference First Round on Saturday. 

"Obviously, I've known what I'm capable of and I know what potential I've had," he continued. "I knew I had to work on a lot of stuff to get to this point, but saying during the summer that I was going to be playing the first four games of the playoffs, at the Olympics, and 33 starts throughout the year, I would have almost been laughing at myself. But at the same time, I knew I could be there."

The 23-year-old knew it because he's confident in himself, in who he is as a goalie, in his team and in his ability to rise to the occasion. 

Now that he's here, he's no longer pinching himself. 

Wallstedt is instead just playing, enjoying the moment and proving Minnesota coach John Hynes was right to give him the starting job in this best-of-7 series against Dallas ahead of the more experienced Filip Gustavsson.

In his first NHL postseason, Wallstedt has stopped 130 of 140 shots through four games, including nine in overtime Saturday, good for a 2.06 goals-against average and .929 save percentage. 

The series is tied 2-2 entering Game 5 at American Airlines Center in Dallas on Tuesday (8 p.m. ET; FDSNWI, FDSNNO, Victory+, ESPN2, TVAS2, SN360).

"He's played to his identity," Hynes said. "When I say that, there are certain things that make him a good goalie. He's a big strong kid. He's got poise in the net. He fights through traffic well. He's extremely competitive on second and third chances. That's what makes him a good goalie, and he's been consistent with that. 

“He's playing his game. He's playing the game to his strengths and his ability. He's not too high, not too low. He's steady, calm and focused and playing to his identity. That's why he's played so well so far."

The Wild don't view Wallstedt as a rookie anymore, not after his play during the regular season, when he went 18-9-6 with four shutouts, a 2.61 GAA and .916 save percentage.

"Yeah, rookie, I don't know, it's just what 'Wally's' persona is," forward Marcus Foligno said. "When you see a kid have that swagger you're just like, 'He's got it.' There's nothing better than being (like that) as a goalie. Wally, we've known this for a while now that he was going to be this stud goalie, and when you get to know him, he's got the attitude of a stud goalie. 

"He's got his chin up high and he walks around like he owns the room sometimes."

Minnesota defenseman Brock Faber said, "He wants to be on the ice in the biggest games. That's what makes him so special."

But even as confident as Wallstedt is, as much as he wants it and as much as he knew he was playing well in the final weeks of the regular season, he admitted he was surprised to be named the Game 1 starter.

Gustavsson, after all, started more games in the regular season (49) and had 11 games of postseason experience to Wallstedt's zero. Gustavsson is 4-6 with a 2.53 GAA and .917 save percentage in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

"I felt like I deserved it," Wallstedt said. "I felt like I played well enough that I deserved playing Game 1, but maybe the expectations from the outside and what we've been through during the season told the group that he was going to play." 

It didn't suggest that to Hynes. 

Sure, it would have been easy for Hynes to go with Gustavsson knowing Wallstedt was ready if needed, but he basically said, ‘Why wait?’ and decided to play the goalie who he felt was playing better. 

The Wild played 20 regular-season games after the NHL Trade Deadline on March 6; Wallstedt started nine and went 4-3-2 with a 1.98 GAA and .930 save percentage; Gustavsson started 11 and was 6-5-0 with a 3.22 GAA and .875 save percentage.

"He was playing at the top of his game," Hynes said of Wallstedt. "He was confident. He was at the top of his game. He was playing really well. I think he met the moment in Game 1 and he got his feet under him. He's consistent, solid. He's not doing anything that is not in his repertoire to play. He's just playing his game and he's being great."

Gustavsson has declined to speak to the media about the situation, but Wallstedt said his senior goalie partner -- Gustavsson is four years older -- has been supportive and consistently offering his thoughts, feedback and occasional bits of advice based on what he's seeing.

They talk between periods and sometimes during media timeouts if Gustavsson sees something or Wallstedt wants to check with his partner about a situation or a play or a save, or anything really.

"We've done it the same all year," Wallstedt said. "Obviously, it's very easy with the communication in Swedish, too, where we don't have to involve anyone else. It's just us. I can say, ‘Maybe I'm feeling this or that,’ and ask, ‘What is he seeing?’ Maybe he's seeing something that I could have played the puck that way or this way. We just go well back and forth like that."

Game 5 could bring a different narrative, but it remains Wallstedt's net. The No. 20 pick in the 2021 NHL Draft is proving to the Wild and the rest of the NHL he’s arrived.

That's why he's not pinching himself anymore. He's just playing.

"Everything felt natural during the season when stuff started to happen," Wallstedt said. "I started to play more games and that felt natural. I got to the Olympics and I felt I deserved that. As you do things, you just keep earning more and more. 

“Obviously, now we're at this point and now it's just about every day and winning every game, but it doesn't feel weird that I'm at this point. It feels like the transition has been pretty natural."