During Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final, I was multi-tasking, trying to get some work done while watching the Washington Capitals and Vegas Golden Knights battle it out for professional hockey supremacy. The Caps got the jump on the Knights, building a 3-0 first-period lead, which prompted a few hockey “experts” on Twitter to call on Vegas coach Gerard Gallant to replace starting goalie Marc-Andre Fleury. I had to laugh.
Fleury, the Pittsburgh Penguins castoff, had almost single-handedly willed the expansion Knights through the first three rounds of the playoffs. While some pundits lamented that an expansion team making the finals somehow put the league in a bad light, I saw things differently. First, it was a testament to hockey being a team sport that actually put the emphasis on “team” rather than individual stars. Second, Fleury’s performance re-emphasized the importance of having a hot goaltender in the playoffs.
By Game 4 of the finals, it was obvious that Washington was the better team, or at the very least the deeper team, according to NBC’s Pierre McGuire. I agree. None of the three Capitals goals in the first period of that pivotal fourth game were Fleury’s fault (and I’m not one to make excuses for goaltenders). The only reason for pulling Fleury at that point was the idea of giving the team a “wake-up call.”
The problem with this idea is that ignores one inescapable fact: Fleury is the heart and soul of this Vegas team. That’s one of the chief reasons Vegas GM George McPhee went after him in the expansion draft. “Flower” always has been a quality goaltender. More importantly, he’s always been an outstanding teammate. The combination of the two is what makes the Quebec native such a valuable asset.
“He genuinely cared about everyone he plays with, which is rare in this day and age,” Jeff Zatkoff, who played with Fleury from 2013-16, told InGoal Magazine’s Kevin Woodley. “Even if he is not the one in the net, I always felt like he genuinely wanted me to do well, or wanted (Matt Murray) to do well. Genuine is a good way to describe him. It doesn’t matter if you played in the league 10 years or one, he treats everyone the same and that goes a long way in the locker room. … The guys love playing for him, and then combine that with his talent and it’s a recipe for success.”
Fleury, I should admit, has been one of my favorite goalies since he was drafted No. 1 overall by the Penguins in 2003. I loved his sheer athleticism, competitiveness and lightning-quick reflexes. But more than anything else, I was taken by Fleury’s unadulterated joy for the game. The guy was always smiling, having a blast. Which, if you know goaltenders, isn’t the norm. And it clearly wasn’t an act. This is how Fleury is genuinely wired.
For his great piece on Fleury in InGoal Magazine, Woodley spoke with several of Fleury’s former teammates after the Quebec native this season became the 13th goalie — and second fastest — with 400 NHL wins.
“Marc-Andre is like chocolate, you just can’t not like him,” former goalie Jocelyn Thibault told Woodley. “He’s always smiling, always having fun, but he’s very professional, even on bad days and through tough times in his career. I’m not surprised a lot of people are cheering for him because he is one of the greatest teammates I’ve ever seen.”
More importantly, Fleury’s attitude with the Penguins didn’t change even after he lost his starting role to Murray. The man came to the rink every day, strapped on his gear, flashed that million-dollar smile, and competed, regardless of whether he was getting the next start.
“Players respect that and what that does is when it’s your turn to be in the fight and back in the net, teammates want to do more for you,” Thibault said. “You want your teammates to play for you, but you have to earn that. It’s that respect, and throughout his career, he has been able to do that because you could tell in Pittsburgh whenever he stepped in the net players wanted to play hard for him.”
Fleury’s positive attitude, wrote Woodley, has been there since day one. Andy Chiodo saw it up close during the 2004 American Hockey League playoffs. Fleury started that season behind a poor Penguins team in the NHL, was loaned to Canada for the World Junior Hockey Championships, then finished his QMJHL season before being called up to Wilkes-Barre for the AHL playoffs. He got into a couple games, then spent rest of the run to the Calder Cup final watching from the press box.
“He was a first overall pick, so he could have made waves sitting in the stands watching us go on a two-month playoff run, and he didn’t,” Chiodo told Woodley. “He was supportive. We’d talk shop. We supported one another. And fast forward 15 years and he carries himself the same way. The constant has been his amazing character. He’s positive, he enjoys life, he works his (butt) off, he always has a smile on this face and deep down he knows he’s good.”
Ultimately, Fleury and his Golden Knights came up short during their Cinderella run in the Stanley Cup playoffs (thanks, in large part, to the great play of Washington goalie Braden Holtby). As I said before, I believe the better team won. Now, the casual fan might consider this a failure. That’s why they’re casual fans. Fleury is a winner by any standard. He proves it every time he steps onto the ice, and into the locker room.
I’m sure Fleury was disappointed with having to watch Alex Ovechkin and the Capitals celebrating their first Stanley Cup on Vegas’ ice. I’m just as certain that he’ll bounce back with another great season.
