It probably wasn’t the debut that veteran goaltender Tomas Vokoun was hoping for when he arrived to Washington. Two minutes into the game against the team that swept the Capitals out of the postseason last year was up 1-0. Vokoun went on to allow four more in the remaining 58 minutes and despite scoring five goals, the Caps didn’t take a lead until the third period.
Regardless of the difficult start, Vokoun kept his cool and ended up shutting out the Lightning in a shutout that secured the Capitals win. But to me, that wasn’t even the most impressive part of his night. After the win, Vokoun didn’t shy away from his tough first outing with the Caps.
@SergeyKocharov
Sergey Kocharov Didn’t even have to ask Vokoun to talk to media after the game… Standout guy. Pro all around. Can’t wait for his next start. #Caps
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“It was probably my worst game in five years,” Vokoun said according to Mike Vogel of WashCaps.com. “It just shows how strong this team is. They literally won tonight without goaltending.” Talk about be tough on yourself. “We won the game, certainly no thanks to me. But the team played great and I think it shows a lot of character.” Nothing but class.
Sergey Kocharov of Capitals PR tweeted that he didn’t even ask Vokoun to talk to the media after the game, but that he took it upon himself to do so. “Pro all around.”
Only thing that bothers me is I hear that Vokoun was voicing displeasure over not starting over Neuvirth on the home opener. Neuvi has won like 18 straight games. He deserved the opening game, despite Vokoun’s stature as a vet. I did like the way he closed things out last night.