Part of the fun of the summer is that many of the Russian players conduct interviews back at home. With a more comfortable setting, and conversing in their primary language they are often more at ease. We saw it with Mikhail Sergachev last week, and now a short clip of an interview with Andrei Vasilevskiy is making the rounds.
According to the translation provided, Vasilevskiy was asked (somewhat in jest) why the Lightning even employ back-up goaltenders when he plays so often. With a smile, The Big Cat acknowledged that being a back-up in the NHL is “tough work”, citing the long stretches they go through without playing. He also acknowledged that he’s not getting any younger, and at some point the Lightning are going to replace him.
Time and age come for everyone, even Vasy. He still has three years left on his current contract, which runs through the 2027-28 season. He’ll be 33 at that point, and while to this middle-age blogger that seems young, in sports (and especially among goaltenders) he might as well be Methuselah. His next contract negotiation is bound to be interesting.
NHL Summer Splash Rankings: No. 25, Tampa Bay Lightning
The Hockey News’ NHL summer splash rankings are in full swing, with the Tampa Bay Lightning coming in 25th place.
We’re focusing on each NHL team’s off-season, weighing in on the teams that improved, stayed the same and got worse this off-season. We’ll be breaking down all additions and departures, including hirings and firings.
This isn’t about who had the best or worst off-season, although there are some exceptions if a team did more or less than expected to support their core.
You can see the teams that finished beneath the Lightning at the bottom. Now, let’s focus on the state of the Bolts.
