With each game, Tampa Bay Lightning goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy puts his latest injury episode further into the rearview mirror. He struggled out of the gate and still isn’t quite playing like the high-caliber goalie we’ve come to know. However, he’s progressing, and his upswing has come in tandem with his team improving its fortunes.
Let’s dive into his recent progression. It gives an idea of where he stands and what it means for the team.
Progression Is Reflected in the Stats for Vasilevskiy
The first few games of the season were brutal. In his first three games, he posted an .870 save percentage (SV%), and the team was 0-2-1 in those games. Since then, he’s had a .919 SV% over his last six games, and the team is 3-2-1 over that span.
He allowed the same number of goals in the latter six games as he did in the former three. When the star goalie is looking better, so is the outcome of the game.
Now, in fairness to him, the team in front of him wasn’t doing anything to bail him out early in the season (from ‘Fantasy trends and hidden gems: Time to panic over Oilers, Lightning players?,’ The Athletic, Oct. 23, 2025). The play was sloppy, notably on defense. They were losing the puck on turnovers and letting stretches of games get out of hand. There have been times when the offense didn’t back him up either, and it led to overtime losses.
That being said, he still looked rusty, and advanced stats also showed he wasn’t playing his best. After four games, he had a goals saved above expected of negative-0.6. This includes a game from his good stretch. It was likely a little worse before that. However, this is the archived stat that I have from a previous check-in to reference.
Since then, this stat has improved. His goals saved above expected is up to a positive 3.7. It’s far from the best. It’s 15th among goalies who have played at least five games. However, the important part is the progression.
An Overall Reflection of the Lightning Overall
As we’ve already alluded to earlier, Vasilevskiy was far from alone in his early struggles. Others who had slow starts didn’t even miss the time in training camp and preseason that he did.
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Two notable players who embodied the slower, sloppier play were Nikita Kucherov and Brandon Hagel. Lo and behold, when they also started to play better, so did the team. When the stars play like they’re stars, it translates to wins. Really, who would have thought?
Vasilevskiy missed time again. He had the rust he had to shake off, and it showed early on. However, as he’s gotten more time to see action, he’s looked better.
Impact on the Team Overall
Given that the Lightning just rattled off a five-game winning streak, and Vasilevskiy was between the pipes for three of them, it’s a solid indicator that they’re going to be fine.
Even in the loss that snapped the streak on Tuesday, he looked better. He made some good saves against the Colorado Avalanche, and while you can put some blame on two of the three goals allowed, the one that gave Colorado the lead can be attributed to sloppy defense. Victor Hedman lost track of the puck in the corner of the defensive zone. It allowed the Avalanche to pick it up and quickly score in front of the net.
This team has issues they still need to iron out, but they’re improving overall, and goaltending was far from the problem in the loss. When the last line of defense has the team’s back, it builds some confidence.
It would still be wise to space out his starts early on. Again, it has nothing to do with performance. It’s all about health. If Vasilevskiy has to miss any time, this team will be back to square one again with his ramp-up. Head coach Jon Cooper has done a good job finding that balance early, and they need to stick to his game plan. It’s only bringing good.
