2 min read • May 06, 2022
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Three NHL playoff contenders – the Hurricanes, Penguins, and Predators – shift into Games 3 and 4 of the first round without their starting goalies.
Carolina heads to Boston up 2-0 on the Bruins for Game 3 tonight, but will rely on third-string goalkeeper Pyotr Kochetkov.
Veteran backup Antti Raanta left the Hurricanes' Game 2 win with his face bloodied after taking a hard shot to the face. The 32-year-old will serve as the backup for Kochetkov tonight, meaning he should be ready to step back in front of the net for Game 4.
Raanta, 15-5-4 as a starter, was himself replacing Frederik Andersen, who hasn't played since suffering a left leg injury on April 16. Andersen was top-3 in the NHL this season with a 2.17 goals allowed per game rate and a 92.2% save percentage.
Pittsburgh, tied 1-1 with the Rangers, will also be without its top two goalkeepers after Casey DeSmith underwent season-ending core muscle surgery on Friday.
DeSmith has started six games since all-star Tristan Jarry suffered a left foot injury on April 14 before suffering his own injury in Game 1 in New York.
Jarry has yet to resume skating since the injury and while there is no timetable for his return, Pittsburgh head coach Mike Sullivan has yet to rule him out for the postseason.
Thirty-year-old Louis Domingue started Game 2, saving 35 of 40 shots in a 5-2 loss, and will be tasked with stopping the New York attack as the Penguins head to Pittsburgh.
Nashville was already facing an uphill climb against No. 1 seed Colorado, but are now at a breaking point down 2-0 and missing goalie Juuse Saros.
Saros hasn't played since suffering a lower left leg injury on April 26, but is trending towards a return in Game 3 or 4, according to The Athletic's Adam Vingan.
Twenty-five-year-old Connor Ingram has been tabbed as the starter and has made 80 saves on 84 shots against the dominant Avalanche offense.
The Predators rested Saros for the final two games of the regular season and have kept him out for the first two games of the playoffs, including a 7-2 blowout loss.
Saros was top five in the NHL this season with a 38-25-3 record and four shutouts.
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