Boston Bruins' Tuukka Rask ready to take on full-time goalie position -NHL Update
With the absence of Tim Thomas for what according to him will be the entire 2012-2013 National Hockey League (NHL) regular season, Boston Bruins’ former backup goalie, Tuukka Rask, is excited and looking forward to becoming the primetime net minder for the
2011 Stanley Cup winning team.
Bruins played it safe and signed on Rask to a one-year, $3.5 million contract days back and are willing to give him the position to prove his worth. Analysts suspect that if Rask manages to impress the team, Boston might even look into trading Tim Thomas’
negotiating rights to free up some space in the salary cap.
"It's a testament to Tuukka that he's willing to do this for one year," Bruins’ general manager, Peter Chiarelli, said. "He's a calm, poised goaltender, who you see little bits of the fiery temper here and there, and I don't mind that. But generally speaking
he's a goalie who's composed, technically very good and athletic at the same time -- and I don't have any reasons to think that he's not going to emerge as the No. 1 for years to come. I don't really have any concerns about it."
Boston has given Rask more than enough time these past five seasons in order to develop his playing abilities and now is the time for him to shine or else the 25-year-old Finnish goalie might as well say bye to the Bruins.
Last season, Boston even termed Rask to be their number one along with Tim Thomas along with saying that they did not have any backups. Rask is certainly looking to fill the gap that will be left by Thomas, but it surely will not be an easy task.
Rask has a total of 102 games played under his belt with 47 wins and 35 losses. He also has an accumulated .926 save percentage and 2.20 goals-against average.
Boston Bruins need Tuukka Rask to be on top of his game next season as they will be looking towards him for answers with Tim Thomas out of the scene. It will definitely be exciting to see how the young goalie handles the pressure next time.
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