Golden Knights select starting goalie for Game 3 vs. Canucks
Robin Lehner will start Game 3 of the Golden Knights’ second-round series against the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday in Edmonton, Alberta.
Lehner has started nine of the Knights’ 11 playoff games and each of the past five. He is 6-2 with a .909 save percentage and 2.34 goals-against average this postseason.
Lehner is coming off his second loss of the playoffs in Game 2 against the Canucks. He allowed four goals on 26 shots in the 5-2 defeat Tuesday in a game in which his defense let him down. The Knights gave up 14 high-danger scoring chances, the third-most they have allowed this postseason.
Coach Pete DeBoer’s decision to start Lehner on Saturday means it’s likely Marc-Andre Fleury will get Game 4 on Sunday. DeBoer started each goalie once when the Knights played on back-to-back days in the first round against the Chicago Blackhawks.
DeBoer said Wednesday “nothing’s changed in my mind that both guys are going to play as we move forward here.”
“I think I’ve said from Day One, I think that’s an advantage for us,” DeBoer said Saturday. “The tighter the schedule, the more back-to-backs, the more your depth comes into play, and that’s at all positions.”
Fleury is 2-0 this postseason with an .886 save percentage and a 2.50 goals-against average. His agent, Allan Walsh, made it clear Aug. 22 that he was unhappy with his client’s lack of playing time with a since-deleted post on Twitter. The tweet showed Fleury with a sword labeled “DeBoer” in his back.
Fleury met with Knights general manager Kelly McCrimmon and DeBoer to discuss the tweet and asked Walsh to take down the post. DeBoer said Aug. 23 he was “100 percent” confident the issue was a settled matter.
“All that stuff is noise to us,” DeBoer said. “We’re not going to deal with it or spend any time on it. We’re here for one thing, and that’s to pursue a Stanley Cup. There’s not a doubt in my mind that every guy in that room is fully invested in that.”
Contact Ben Gotz at bgotz@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BenSGotz on Twitter.
