Vokoun still Predators' No. 1 goalie - Nashville, Tennessee - Thursday, 01/04/07 - Tennessean.com
Vokoun still Predators' No. 1 goalie
Trotz: Hot Mason won't bump vet
Goalie controversy? What goalie controversy?
Predators Coach Barry Trotz set the record straight following practice on Wednesday:
Tomas Vokoun is the team's No. 1 goalie.
Trotz does expect to rotate Vokoun and Chris Mason for a few games as Vokoun works his way back from thumb surgery, but the eventual plan is for Vokoun to become the main man once again.
"With all due respect, Tomas is the guy,'' Trotz said. "But with all due respect, Tomas has missed a lot of time, so it's going to take him some time to get back. There's not a controversy … Tomas is going to be No. 1.''
The goaltending situation had grown more and more interesting over the past few weeks as Mason posted one strong performance after another following Vokoun's Nov. 23 injury.
In 20 appearances since then, Mason has produced a 12-6-1 record, .929 save percentage and 2.24 goals-against average. He's notched three shutouts and won two shootouts.
But Trotz said he doesn't believe an elite player like Vokoun, who was in the midst of an excellent season himself (11-4-1 record, 2.48 goals-against average, .920 save percentage), should lose his position to injury.
"He's been the No. 1 guy,'' Trotz said of Vokoun, who's been Nashville's starting keeper for more than three seasons. "If you're a top player like Tomas or (Paul) Kariya or (Steve) Sullivan, you never lose your spot.
"But you do have to be conscious of the 20 other guys, that you're not going to be on top of your game when you come back, so sometimes you ease yourself in a little. So my plan right now is to rotate the first couple games and then go from there.''