Hurricanes Goalie Change: Brind'Amour's Answer Is 20 Years Old
One loss. That's what's left before Carolina's season is over.
The Hurricanes trail Vegas in the Stanley Cup Final.
Only a small number of teams have ever clawed back from that hole. Game 4 is Tuesday at T-Mobile Arena, and Rod Brind'Amour has a call that could decide everything.
Frederik Andersen was untouchable through three rounds.
Twelve wins. A 1.41 GAA. A .931 save percentage. He joined Ken Dryden and Gerry Cheevers as the third goalie in NHL history to win 12 of his first 13 starts in a single playoff year. Then the Final started and everything fell apart. His series save percentage is .815. That's not a slump. That's a full collapse.
Brind'Amour pulled him after two periods in Game 3.
He allowed multiple goals on a limited number of shots. Replaced him with a goalie who'd never played a single playoff minute.
Bussi gave him everything he needed
Brandon Bussi stopped 18 of 19 in relief. He denied Mitch Marner on a penalty shot cold. The only goal that beat him was Shea Theodore's double-overtime winner that somehow banked off the end boards and trickled in off his skate. That's not Bussi's fault. That's bad luck carved in wood and chrome.
Bussi had a strong regular season but was a waiver claim from Florida back in October.
Nobody expected him to matter in June.
Now he's the only reason this series isn't already over.
They scored three goals in a very short span afterward. Martinook, Hall, Staal. Svechnikov tied it 4-4 with under two minutes left. Vegas won in double OT anyway.
But Bussi gave his team a heartbeat when they had no business having one.
Vegas is exposing something neither goalie can fix
Here's the uncomfortable truth: the goalie decision might not matter as much as Brind'Amour thinks.
Vegas has outscored Carolina significantly in the second period this series.
That's not a goaltending problem. That's a systemic breakdown. Whatever the Hurricanes are doing between the first and second intermission, the Golden Knights have figured it out and they're exploiting it every single game.
Andersen can't cover up defensive errors. Bussi can't either.
But Bussi showed something in that Game 3 comeback that Andersen hasn't shown in three games: a reason to believe.
Brind'Amour lived this exact moment in 2006
Here's why this decision feels familiar to anyone who remembers 2006.
Brind'Amour was Carolina's captain when they faced this same crossroads against the Buffalo Sabres.
Cam Ward was in net, got pulled after allowing four goals in one period. Backup Martin Gerber came in, won Game 4 with a shutout. And Brind'Amour's team rode that momentum all the way to the Cup.
The parallels are almost eerie.
Veteran goalie struggling in a crucial series. Backup playing well in relief. Brind'Amour, now on the bench instead of the locker room, deciding which way to go.
Twenty years later, the locker room is different, the names are other, but the choice is identical.
Trust the veteran who's been here before, or ride the goalie who's giving the team energy right now?
Mitch Marner set a Cup Final record in Game 3 with the fastest hat trick in championship history, breaking a long-standing mark. He's got 28 points in 19 playoff games. Vegas isn't going away. The Golden Knights have found Carolina's weaknesses and they're not letting go.
The Hurricanes need to cut down on the defensive mistakes, particularly in the second period, or nothing changes in Game 4 regardless of who's in net.
But if Brind'Amour is looking for a sign, the 2006 team handed him one: sometimes the hot hand wins.
Key takeaways
- Andersen went 12-1 through three rounds with a 1.41 GAA and .931 save percentage, but the Golden Knights exposed him for goals across three games. - Bussi, a waiver claim from October, stopped 18 of 19 in Game 3 relief and nearly willed Carolina to victory. - Carolina scored three goals in a very short span with Bussi in net. - Brind'Amour faced an identical scenario in 2006 and went with the hot hand; his team won the Cup. - Vegas is outscoring Carolina in the second period, which points to a structural problem beyond goaltending.
Frequently asked questions
Will Brind'Amour start Bussi in Game 4? He hasn't announced yet. After pulling Andersen in Game 3, he has until Tuesday to make that call.
What's the series record? Vegas leads. Only a small number of teams have ever come back from a 3-0 deficit.
Who has the edge? Vegas has found Carolina's weak spots, particularly in the second period, and they're not letting go.
What happened in Game 3? Bussi stopped 18 of 19 shots in relief. Carolina erased a deficit with three goals in a very short span. Vegas won in double overtime.
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What to watch Tuesday: can Carolina's forecheck disrupt Vegas's neutral zone exits?
And does Bussi get the start, or does Brind'Amour go back to the veteran who got them this far?
One thing's certain. Brind'Amour knows exactly what a Game 4 loss means. He's lived it before.