Braden Holtby, Washington Capitals True Star
Washington Capitals’ goaltender Braden Holtby is slowly but surely becoming the backbone of team, anchoring them throughout the season and putting together a pretty good playoff run so far. In Game 3, he was an absolute star, turning away 30 shots on goal to hold off the New York Rangers and lead his team to a 2-1 series lead.
To be honest, I never gave Holtby much thought. I have watched him match up against the Rangers beginning in 2011 and, even though he made some good saves, I never feared him. I just never thought of him as an elite goaltender like Henrik Lundqvist, Pekka Rinne and Carey Price. To me, he was always more of a Corey Crawford, good but not unbeatable. The funny thing is that none of the elite goaltenders I mentioned have a Cup, while Crawford (the less scary goaltender) has two.
So that made me wonder, why do I consider those three elite? I think it has to do with perception from the media and how they garnered this reputation in the League as being great. But, it also made me realize (and Crawford is a great example) that good goaltenders, who play with consistency and make big plays at the right time, can be just as dangerous—if not more—than those dubbed as elite.
See, Holtby has far less pressure on him than Lundqvist does. Because if Holtby fails to lead his team past the Rangers most people will be like “oh well he went up against King Henrik.” Yet, if Lundqvist fails, he will hear far more criticism.
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As Shakespeare put it “uneasy lies the head that wears a crown.” In this scenario, I take that to mean Lundqvist has far more responsibilities than Holtby because he is seen as the Rangers superstar, while that title falls to Alex Ovechkin for the Capitals. Not having that added pressure allows Holtby to just play his game. This is a big advantage for the goaltender.
Over the course of these playoffs, I have come to change my mind about Holtby. I have gained more respect for his abilities. He is putting together shutdown performances and keeping the Capitals in each game. All three have been one-goal games. In the two games that his team won, Holtby only gave up one goal total. That’s impressive as he is facing Derick Brassard, Rick Nash, Marty St. Louis and the rest of the Rangers lineup that is filled with speedsters and scorers.
I don’t think I would go as far as saying he is better than Lundqvist, but he is matching his abilities. Sometimes he even plays better than the King; Game 3 is a great example. He played phenomenally, consistently stopping the Rangers’ attempts, including a breakaway by St. Louis.
It’s like he didn’t even flinch. Every time he takes off his mask (which happens a lot—what is wrong with that thing?) his face is not tense or tight; it’s just focused. It’s like he has an alter ego out on the ice, which may be the case I don’t know, and he uses that to get through the 60 (sometimes more) minutes.
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His calm and collected attitude is something I have come to admire. He may not make all the highlight reels with his saves, but the point is he makes them. The Capitals have long needed a goaltender then can look to to lead them, and I think they have found it with Holtby.
If he continues to put up performances like he did in Game 3, the Capitals just might have a chance at knocking out the Presidents’ Trophy-winning Rangers and making it past the second round for the first time in the Ovechkin era.