Golden Knights name goalie for Game 1 of Western Final

Marc-Andre Fleury will make his fourth start this postseason in Game 1 of the Western Conference Final between the Golden Knights and Dallas Stars on Sunday at Rogers Place in Edmonton, Alberta.

Fleury hasn’t started since Aug. 30 in Game 4 of the Knights’ second-round series against the Vancouver Canucks. He allowed three goals on 31 shots in a 5-3 win.

Overall, Fleury is 3-0 with an .893 save percentage and 2.67 goals-against average this postseason. He will face Stars goaltender Anton Khudobin. The 34-year-old Russian is 8-5 with a .909 save percentage and 2.94 goals-against average.

Fleury starting means goaltender Robin Lehner gets a break after playing three games in four days, including starts on back-to-back days in Games 6 and 7 against the Canucks. Lehner shut out Vancouver in Game 7 on Friday and tied an NHL record with three shutouts in a series.

The 29-year-old pending unrestricted free agent is 8-4 with a .918 save percentage and 1.99 goals-against average in the postseason.

Despite Lehner’s stellar play, Fleury could give the Knights a lift after the team’s emotional Game 7. The face of the franchise is a beloved locker room figure, and his presence in net could motivate his teammates after a quick turnaround from their previous series.

“The emotion of a Game 7 does drain you,” coach Pete DeBoer said Sunday morning. “That high, it’s tough to bounce back right away from an emotion win, or loss. That’s just a fact.”

Khudobin has been the Stars’ primary starter in the playoffs with No. 1 goalie Ben Bishop largely unavailable. Bishop, a three-time Vezina Trophy finalist, has appeared in three of Dallas’ 17 postseason games. Stars coach Rick Bowness said Sunday morning that Bishop is skating but remains “unfit to play.”

Khudobin made 40 saves in Dallas’ Game 7 victory over the Colorado Avalanche on Friday.

Contact Ben Gotz at bgotz@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BenSGotz on Twitter.