first shift 🏒
Jake Oettinger was talking about teammate Casey DeSmith on Tuesday and made this statement: “He’s been one of the best goalies in the league the last two years, so it’s a pleasure to share the net with him.”
Exaggeration from a friend? Actually, not so much. While DeSmith is technically a backup, among goaltenders with 20 or more starts over the past two seasons, he ranks fifth in save percentage at .915 and eighth in GAA at 2.51. That’s really high cotton.
“He deserves a lot of credit and praise,” Oettinger said. “Every time I see him, I’m clearly impressed.”
DeSmith is 4-1-2 with a 2.22 GAA and .917 save percentage this season. He said he feels good on the ice and that’s the key to everything.
“It’s not really about the numbers, it’s about playing your best every night and giving your team a chance to win,” DeSmith said. “There are some games where I could have been better, but I don’t think there have been many games where I felt like I didn’t give my team a chance to win. I don’t think I’ve gone off my game, I haven’t felt like that so far this year.”
This is impressive when you consider he gets pretty tough starts as a backup. Four of their first seven games have been on the road, and Wednesday will be the fifth. Typically he also gets the second night of a back-to-back, and will do so again on Wednesday in Seattle.
“It’s part of the job and he handles it really well,” Stars coach Glenn Gulutzan said. “He definitely gives us his best every game.”
That challenge has been a little tougher this season, as the NHL has been more chaotic and the Stars have faced ups and downs while acclimating to a new coaching staff.
“There’s no bad teams, that’s just how it is in this league and how many good young players there are,” said DeSmith, 34, who has played 197 NHL games. “The young players are just stepping up and making a difference, and it makes it tough every night.”
DeSmith said being experienced has helped. He and the stars had a rough start and bounced back and said they responded appropriately.
“It’s not about a goal, it’s not about a period,” DeSmith said. “We’ve seen that, not only for me personally, but for our team as well. We’ve had some bad starts and some comebacks. We’ve also had some good starts and haven’t kept it going. That’s why it’s huge for all of us to get that consistency.”
With DeSmith playing a solid backup role, the Stars have been more consistent than most NHL teams.
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