It wasn’t Jacob Markstrom’s night ultimately, but he proved again that he can hack it in the show.
The Vancouver Canucks’ backup netminder, now 25 years old, has excelled at every level of hockey: from the World Championships, to the AHL.
He has the size, the pedigree and the athleticism that NHL teams look for in goaltenders. Markstrom has one problem though: he hasn’t been able to stop shots taken by NHL-level shooters at a passable rate.
Until now, that is.
The Canucks fell 4-3 in overtime to the Montreal Canadiens on Monday night, so the result obviously didn’t go his way, but that shouldn’t obscure how Markstrom appears to have found his game at the NHL level. And really, surrendering third-period leads is just kind of the Canucks’ thing this season.
“Up by one (late), it’s tough to lose that one,” Markstrom told reporters on Monday. “I have to be better on that last goal. That can’t go in especially that late in the game.
“It hit the paddle of my stick and then went up my arm and into the net.”
Sure, Tomas Fleischmann’s game-tying goal wasn’t a moment likely to be included on Markstrom’s sizzle reel, but this one could’ve gotten out of hand much earlier were it not for his solid performance.
“I thought he played good,” Canucks coach Willie Desjardins said of Markstrom game. “Had some tough shots, I thought he made some big saves.”
He definitely did, even if the .906 save percentage (not counting 3-on-3) doesn’t paint an accurate portrait of how calm and steady Markstrom was on Monday night. His performance was in stark contrast with what we saw when Markstrom last got a look in the NHL.
Sure there was a decent performance in Arizona late last year, but mostly Canucks fans remember when Markstrom was overwhelmed and beaten for three-quick goals against the San Jose Sharks. This season Markstrom appears to be ably turning away NHL shooters.
“I felt pretty good,” Markstrom said. “My body feels good, mentally I feel great.
“You want to win though when you come in and I haven’t played in a couple games and you really want that win.”
If Markstrom really wants the win, he’s on the wrong road trip.
Wins and losses aside, this was a big night for Markstrom. Vancouver’s backup stopped Montreal chances in droves at Le Centre Bell. As the team in front of him took a few undisciplined penalties and went into survival mode in the second frame, Markstrom coped well with the Canadiens’ fastball.
Peering effectively through traffic, Markstrom flashed the glove repeatedly, giving his on-their-heels teammates a chance to catch their breath. His signature save came shorthanded in the second period – on what some Montreal-based media were describing as the Habs’ most threatening power play of the year – when Markstrom gloved a P.K. Subban slapshot, windmill style. That’s the play that’ll go on the sizzle reel.
Markstrom may not have been able to steal the game on Monday night, but the Canucks don’t need him to be spectacular. They just need him to be solid. They need him to be capable of giving workhorse starter Ryan Miller a more frequent night off.
In Toronto on Saturday night, Miller was dripping with fatigue following another loss, his fifth in a row. He admitted he’d had a bad week.
Physically and mentally, Miller was understandably drained. The veteran Canucks starter has played more minutes and faced more rubber than any goaltender in hockey so far this season. He’s started back-to-back games on multiple occasions.
At 35-years-old and coming off of a significant knee injury; Miller’s minutes need to be carefully managed.
That Markstrom has emerged as a more than capable option is of mammoth significance for the Canucks. Too often the Vancouver market has watched as goaltenders get overused and ridden into the ground; from Roberto Luongo in his multiple 70-plus starts and playoffs heyday, to Eddie Lack in the John Tortorella season.
Vancouver’s backup goalie didn’t get the win on Monday night, but Markstrom did play well enough that the Canucks will adjust how they use their netminders over the balance of the season.
“Every time he’s come in he’s played well for us, and I thought he gave us a good chance again tonight,” Desjardins said of Markstrom.
“We’ll change our rotation a little bit. Miller won’t be playing quite as much here in back-to-back games or anything like that.”
Canucks fans, historically, love their backup goaltenders and their goalie controversies – both those that are legitimate, and those that are manufactured.
With Miller and Markstrom, there is no controversy. Vancouver is going to ride Miller in net this season.
To get the most out of Miller though, the Canucks are going to need to play Markstrom.
