Fans, Experts Mixed On Vokoun Starting Game 5
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - Hockey fans aren't short on opinions and certainly not during the playoffs. When the top seed is tied with the eighth seed after four games, the fans have lots to talk about.
Penguin's playoff hockey has fans fired up as they prepare for tonight’s Game 5.
“Everybody is debating or not whether they are going to make it, and also too, the hype is so high,” Jeremy Moore said.
“Fleury, it was just, it was getting to his head, and Vokoun's [going to] have a clear head and be able to get it done,” Lauren Gregg said.
Coach Dan Bylsma made the switch and is benching Marc-Andre Fleury in favor of Tomas Vokoun after the Islanders shocked the Penguins Tuesday night.
“This is the most unknown game that we have gone into in a long time. Each one of them in the Stanley Cup [Playoffs] seems to be,” Gregg Gianotti of 93-7 The Fan said.
There was shortage of opinions on The Fan Morning Show.
“They realize that they have an opportunity. Igninla, Morrow, all these guys came over for a chance to win a cup. If you don't get out of the first round, guess what guys, that chance is gone,” Paul Alexander said.
Tonight, it rests squarely on the shoulders of a veteran named Vokoun.
“It's a must-win game. You figure we had the first game where we shut them out 5-0, and then the second game, how can you answer those questions where in the second game they beat us and then it goes into overtime and we barely beat them, and you just have to hope for the best. That's all you can say,” Roger Watzman said.
Root Sports’ color analyst Bob Errey doesn’t agree with swapping Fleury for Vokoun.
“I’m not the coach and I don’t make the decisions, but I’d play Marc-Andre Fleury and I wouldn’t hesitate on that one bit. I’m glad we got Tomas Vokoun, I feel good about him. My feeling would be we have Tomas Vokoun, he’s the backup netminder. We got him to rest Marc-Andre Fleury in the regular season and we got Marc-Andre Fleury to win Stanley cups,” Errey said. “It doesn’t mean the Penguins aren’t going to win the hockey game tonight and it doesn’t mean Tomas Vokoun is not going to play an exceptional hockey game, but I think the problem lies deeper than the netminding.”
While goaltended has certainly been a problem for the Penguins in this series, Errey feels it’s not the sole reason the Penguins find themselves tied 2-2.
“I don’t like the way they’re playing as a unit of five here right now. There’s been a lot of changes through the lineup with guys coming in and out and even in positioning. So, we’ll wait and see if they can really dig down deep like they have many times, insulate Tomas Vokoun, who could admittedly cold be a little rusty going into the net tonight,” Errey said.
Listen to Errey's full interview here:
Bob Errey
The puck is set to drop at 7 p.m. Time will tell if the goaltender swap was the right move.
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