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With Vasilevskiy out, the Lightning should be on hunt for goaltending

As expected, the Tampa Bay Lightning were humming along nicely to start the season, bagging 12 wins from 18 games and jumping out to a one-point lead over the Toronto Maple Leafs for top spot in the Atlantic Division.

True to the trademark, much of the reason for their success hinged on pipeline talent continuing to push and support the superstars that make up the foundation of Jon Cooper’s title-calibre roster.

If there’s one area where they lack such resilience, though, it’s in goal.

News that Andrei Vasilevskiy will miss significant time with a broken foot suffered in practice is about the worst the organization could hear — at least in the short term. Vasilevskiy has been brilliant again to start the season after finishing third in Vezina Trophy voting last year, posting a 9-3-1 mark behind a .927 save clip.

While at least it doesn’t figure to directly impact the Lightning when the games truly matter, Vasilevskiy’s knock could have significant consequences for a team that hasn’t been able to convert on its extended championship window just yet.

As we’ve learned, there is a sizeable difference between finishing first and second in the division they belong to.

Andrei Vasilevskiy has been brilliant to start the season. (Getty).
Andrei Vasilevskiy has been brilliant to start the season. (Getty).

With Vasilevskiy underscoring the importance of the backup position by admitting to being fatigued last season, it should be pointed out that the Lightning thought enough of Louis Domingue to keep him in that role for another two years after previously acquiring him in a trade. And in 30 appearances split between the Lightning and their AHL affiliate he posted reasonably strong numbers, winning the strong majority of his starts behind a .917 save percentage.

In his limited run this season, though, Domingue hasn’t been quite as hot.

Through five starts he’s stopped pucks at an .887 clip. And as the Lightning have done a better job clamping down on the opponent in his most recent starts, Domingue’s efficiency has waned, having allowed 12 goals over the last 72 shots he’s faced across three starts.

A career .906 netminder, should Domingue fail to make significant improvement to his current or historical form for however long he’s the starter, the Bolts do risk fading into the pack of playoff hopefuls inside their division.

Assuming Vasilevskiy is out until at least Christmas, the Lightning are slated to roll with a combination of Domingue and newly-recalled and hardly-qualified vet Eddie Pasquale for almost a quarter of the season with 19 games on the schedule from now until the holiday freeze.

With just four points separating first from fifth, new general manager Julien BriseBois has to seriously explore the trade market to help ensure Tampa’s position in the hyper-competitive Atlantic Division.

So who’s out there?

While there is no shortage scheduled to hit the open market this summer, for myriad reasons top-end goaltenders like Sergei Bobrovsky and Semyon Varlamov don’t make sense. Cam Talbot and Mike Smith are on expiring contracts as well, but both the Flames and Oilers are very much alive in the Pacific Division despite their No. 1 starters fighting it in goal. The fact that so many teams are alive in the postseason chase does cross many bona fide starters and valuable backups off the list.

Then there’s veterans like Jimmy Howard, Cam Ward and Ryan Miller, but obstacles exist with each of those as well, along with many veterans out there. Howard still carries a significant cap hit, while the latter two possess no-movement protection.

If there’s one team that seems like an obvious fit, it’s the Carolina Hurricanes. Included in their goaltending surplus, the Canes have two on the verge of unrestricted free agency — both of whom could conceivably squeeze into Tampa Bay’s tight payroll dynamic.

Petr Mrazek and Curtis McElhinney, while both performing at a level near or below Domingue under similar circumstances, have proven to be capable in spurts. Mrazek in particular is a fascinating candidate, given that he bet on himself with the Hurricanes on a one-year deal and would have the stage to prove his worth on a short run as the starter in Tampa.

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