Philipp Grubauer is surging and his hot streak continued Sunday night against the Pittsburgh Penguins. Grubauer made 37 saves to win his seventh start in his last eight games. The victory clinched the Capitals’ third straight Metropolitan Division championship.
Grubauer’s best save of the night came on future Hall of Famer, Sidney Crosby, and it might have been his best save of the season. After Jakub Jerabek turned the puck over in front of the net, Grubi bailed his defenseman out in a huge way.
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Penguins forward Jake Guentzel ripped off Jerabek’s dangerous pass to Lars Eller. Guentzel then tapped the puck to Sidney Crosby, waiting in the slot.
Grubauer attempted to poke-check the puck away from danger, but was unsuccessful, leaving the net wide open for Crosby to shoot at.
In desperation, Grubauer reached out with his glove and somehow stopped Sid from scoring what would have been his 29th goal of the season.
Someone get Upper Deck on the phone. That’s a hockey card save.
After the game, Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin called Grubauer a “hot goalie” and believed the German netminder could give the team “a chance” to do damage in the postseason.
Ovechkin: "The hot goalie is a hot goalie. They can win the game for us. I hope they’re going to play like that in the playoffs and we’re going to have a chance."
— Isabelle Khurshudyan (@ikhurshudyan) April 2, 2018
Meanwhile, TJ Oshie said the Caps have “two number one goaltenders.”
https://t.co/EuXofVDpYH pic.twitter.com/OkVl3TUfS9
— Isabelle Khurshudyan (@ikhurshudyan) April 2, 2018
Unless something dramatically changes down the stretch, Grubauer seems likely be the Capitals starter in the playoffs. He has to be, right?
