Fleury, Murray playoff resumes debated by NHL.com writers

You can't win in the playoffs without good goaltending. The early part of the 2018 Stanley Cup Playoffs has proven this yet again.
Now that we are down to eight teams in race for the Stanley Cup, the question is: Who is the best goalie left standing?

The three Vezina Trophy finalists -- Pekka Rinne of the Nashville Predators, Connor Hellebuyck of the Winnipeg Jets, and Andrei Vasilevskiy of the Tampa Bay Lightning -- remain, as do Matt Murray of the Pittsburgh Penguins and Marc-Andre Fleury of the Vegas Golden Knights, who combined to lead the Penguins to the Stanley Cup in each of the past two years. Tuukka Rask of the Boston Bruins and Martin Jones of the San Jose Sharks have made it to the Stanley Cup Final and Braden Holtby of the Washington Capitals won the Vezina last season.
A panel of NHL.com writers were asked: Who they would want in goal in a winner-take-all game with the Stanley Cup on the line? Here are the responses:

Nick Cotsonika, columnist

Marc-Andre Fleury.
He's the most accomplished goaltender left, by far. He has been part of three Stanley Cup championship teams. He has 68 playoff wins, tied for 10th in NHL history, 27 more than anyone else left (Rinne has 41), and 13 playoff shutouts, tied for eighth in NHL history, seven more than anyone else left (Murray has six).
But that's not why.
If this is for a Game 7 right here, right now, Fleury is playing better than anyone else right here, right now.

He carried the Pittsburgh Penguins through two rounds last year. When they played the Washington Capitals in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Second Round, on the road, he came up with a 29-save shutout.
After the Vegas Golden Knights selected him in the NHL Expansion Draft, he put up the best numbers of his career: a career-low 2.24 goals-against average and career-high .927 save percentage. If not for the season finale -- in which he allowed six goals on 18 shots in a 7-1 loss at the Calgary Flames, when Vegas had nothing as stake, rested injured players and worked others back into the lineup -- he would have had a 2.14 GAA and .931 save percentage, leading the NHL among goaltenders who played at least 45 games.
Now he has a 1.23 GAA, a .960 save percentage and three shutouts in the playoffs, leading all categories among goaltenders who have played 60 minutes.

Lisa Dillman, staff writer

Not fair, Nick getting to go first!
My temptation is to go counter-intuitive here, because who wants to read the same name over and over again? Seriously, if you look at the resumes of the eight remaining goalies, the only other one you could consider to win one Game 7 would be Murray who, in his time as Fleury's protege, merely won two Stanley Cups championships in two years. Murray can be up-and-down from night to night, but he would be your runner-up.
But how can you not choose Fleury?
In theory, what a goalie has accomplished in the past has no bearing on what he's doing in the present, and goaltenders, even at the top end, can occasionally run hot and cold. Fleury, though, is red hot right now, on top of his game. In Vegas' first five playoff games, Fleury surrendered three goals -- and had these crazy low numbers: 0.54 goals-against average, .987 save percentage. He played pretty well in the 4-3 double-overtime loss in Game 2 against the Sharks. In Vegas' 5-4 overtime win in Game 3 on Monday, he saved the day with a highlight-reel stop against Logan Couture in overtime. That's what money goalies do -- give their teams a chance to win games that maybe they shouldn't. That's what Fleury does.

Tracey Myers, staff writer

I see Fleury has his backers, and understandably so. But I've always been one to stray from the group, so I'll continue that trend.
I'm going with Hellebuyck. I know his only playoff experience is the seven games he has played this season. But pressure is pressure, and Hellebuyck had plenty of it during the regular season. The Jets had 285 man-games lost to injuries. With so many players in and out of the lineup they had to rely on their constants, and Hellebuyck was up to that task.

Look at his performance in Game 1 of the Western Conference Second Round against the Nashville Predators. In a hostile environment and against the Presidents' Trophy winners, Hellebuyck was stellar in making 47 saves in a 4-1 win. That included 163 minutes of shutout hockey that started in the Jets' first-round series against the Minnesota Wild. Hellebuyck doesn't rattle, and that's been evident in the early going of the playoffs.
Hellebuyck has been the backbone of the Jets, the player they could rely upon at critical parts of the season. So, I'm not going to doubt his mettle in a Game 7.

Mike Zeisberger, staff writer

Did I miss something here? Three of my esteemed and respected colleagues have made their selections and no one has picked Murray?
Correct me if I'm wrong here.
Did Murray, 23, not hoist the Stanley Cup twice (2016, 2017) when he was eligible for the Calder Trophy as rookie of the year?
Yes.
Was Murray not the winning goalie in the Penguins' Cup-clinching games the past two seasons; 3-1 against the Sharks in 2016 and 2-0 against the Nashville Predators in 2017?
Yes.
In his brief career, is Murray 3-0 in Game 7s of Stanley Cup Playoffs; 2-1 against the Lightning in the 2016 Eastern Conference Final 2016; 2-0 against the Capitals in the second round last season; and 3-2 against the Ottawa Senators in double overtime in the conference final last season?
Yes.
Has he allowed a total of three goals in three career Game 7s?
Yes.

Not sure you can find any warts in this kid's resume. The numbers speak for themselves. He's perfect in Game 7s, perfect in Stanley Cup-clinching games and has never lost a Stanley Cup Playoff series.
How do you argue against such perfection?
Over to you, Mr. Rosen. Good luck trying.

Dan Rosen. senior writer

I don't need luck, you made part of my argument for me. The choice is Murray. I'm surprised we're even having this debate because it seems obvious.
I'm floored the rest of you don't agree.
I echo everything Mike wrote in his passionate, if also passive aggressive, analysis for why Murray is the only choice in this debate, but I'll add to it.
Never before have I seen a goalie as poised, relaxed and in control regardless of the situation as Murray is. His maturity extends well beyond his 23 years.
If Murray gives up a goal, which we know he doesn't do often in Game 7s, he quickly puts it behind him and moves on to the next save, which he always seems to make. If the Penguins are hemmed in their zone, Murray bails them out. If it's a tight game, an overtime game, Murray is the goalie I'm betting on 100 times out of 100 to get the win.