Lightning not about to fold with rookie in net
Troy Murray answers questions ahead of Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final between the Blackhawks and Lightning.
Q: How big of a deal is it if Tampa Bay goalie Ben Bishop is seriously injured and 20-year-old rookie Andrei Vasilevskiy is now the man?
A: Well, you look at what happened with Corey (Crawford) in the first round, the team had a lot of confidence in Scott Darling to come in and get the job done. Vasilevskiy is one of these guys that they have a lot of confidence in as well. He seemed to handle the pressure at the tail end of (Game 2). He made some really good saves.
You'd certainly like to have Bishop in there, but if it isn't then you move forward and I think that these guys have a good level of confidence with either one of these goaltenders. ... They might say we really need to bear down in our own end of the ice, but it is what it is — and if (Vasilevskiy is in), you move on.
Q: Duncan Keith gets a lot of the press from the Hawks' defensive corps, but Brent Seabrook always steps up in the postseason as well. What impresses you most about him?
A: Well, he's got a franchise high for most goals (7) in one postseason and you've got guys like Chris Chelios, Doug Wilson and Pierre Pilote, and those guys never had 7 goals in one postseason. But Brent Seabrook does. You've got to be very impressed. He quietly goes about his business.
I think this year, him being voted onto the all-star team says a lot about what the players in the league think of Brent Seabrook. Those people understand that checking is a big part of this team, obviously.
Yes, Duncan Keith certainly deserves a lot of the accolades that he has. (Meanwhile) Brent Seabrook quietly does what he does best. He's a big, physical guy that skates well, moves the puck well — he shoots extremely well. And he's one of the leaders inside the locker room. He's a very, very important part of that core group of guys.
Q: There's a lot of talk about how quiet Patrick Kane has been so far in the Final. What do you expect out of them with the series moving to the United Center?
A: He knows that he needs to produce in this series; and two games doesn't make a series. Look at how strong he ended that series against the Anaheim Ducks when he didn't get a point in the first two games.
I expect Patrick to play his best game of the series in Game 3. That's just the way it works. You expect all the top players to respond in the right way when they're looking for results, and they know that people are looking for results. I'm not too concerned, even if he doesn't get points in Game 3. He's still going to be a big part of the success of this team.