“We Need Better Play Out Of The Goaltending Position”; Head Coach Bruce Cassidy Upset With The Recent Performances From His Goaltenders

Vegas Golden Knights head coach Bruce Cassidy publicly called out his goaltenders after a 5-4 shootout loss to the St. Louis Blues. 

The Golden Knights have lost six of their last seven games and despite their comments about staying calm and working together to get through it all, emotions are beginning to run high. Following Monday’s night loss, Cassidy was asked about his thoughts on Noah Hanifin and Alex Pietrangelo and his decision to switch the defence pairings. 

His answer about attempting to find balance, that their game had fallen off a bit and how he was looking for a spark was straightforward before he decided to make a remark about the team’s goaltending.

“We need better play out of the goaltending position right now,” said Cassidy. “We can’t expect to give up four and win – well, we’re not winning, right? We beat Minnesota, we scored four, gave up one. So we just need (to be) better there. We need to outplay their guy a little more often here, and hopefully that changes.”

Adin Hill is in the midst of his first season as a No. 1 goaltender. He’s started in 29 of the Golden Knights 47 games, posting a .901 SV% and a 2.61 GAA. His first two seasons with the Golden Knights saw him register a .914 SV% and a .909 SV%. His game has taken a step back in the new, larger role and Cassidy wants Hill to be more consistent. 

Against the Blues, Hill allowed four goals on 28 shots and the Blues scored on two of their three shootout attempts. To solely blame Hill for the Golden Knights’ recent poor stretch of games would be unfair but it’s not an unrealistic claim to ask your goaltender to occasionally bail you out during difficult times.

The Golden Knights have been able to outscore their problems and also limit chances from their opponents but recently both of those elements have been a struggle. During those circumstances, the expectation is that Hill and Ilya Samsonov could steal a win or two in games they may not deserve to win but neither netminder has done that this season. 

With just less than half the season remaining and an upcoming back-to-back, Hill and Samsonov will be allowed the opportunity to redeem themselves and prove they are ready to back the Golden Knights on a long playoff run.