10th: Mason shuts out St. Louis twice in a five-day span, both on the road
Monday, 03.31.2008 / 5:17 PM
/ 10th Anniversary
By Kevin Wilson
- Nashville Predators
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April 6 and 11, 2006
When Chris Mason found out he would be assuming the starting goaltender’s position due to Tomas Vokoun’s injury, he not only stepped up to the plate, but he thrived during a late-season playoff push that included six straight victories to close the regular season. Among those wins were a pair of shutouts, both coming at St. Louis’ Scottrade Center, in a span of five days.
On April 6, the Red Deer, Alberta native turned aside 18 shots and the offense scored three power-play goals to give the Preds a 3-0 victory. Then April 11, Mason stopped all 27 shots he faced and Mike Sillinger scored the game winner at 12:15 of the third period to give Nashville a 2-0 win, and an eight-game season sweep of the Blues.
"In years past St. Louis always abused us," Mason said. "It's kind of unheard of to sweep, but they beat us up in years past."
The shutouts bookended a 2-1 shootout win over the Chicago Blackhawks at the Sommet Center on April 8, meaning Mason stopped 67-of-68 shots in a three-game span. Coming on the heels of the news about Vokoun, it was reassuring for the new number one goalie to know his teammates had his back.
"It means a lot," Mason said after the second shutout. "We as a team knew before about his status a couple days ago. But still, it's important for me to have the confidence of our team. They've been playing awesome in front of me since they found out."
When Chris Mason found out he would be assuming the starting goaltender’s position due to Tomas Vokoun’s injury, he not only stepped up to the plate, but he thrived during a late-season playoff push that included six straight victories to close the regular season. Among those wins were a pair of shutouts, both coming at St. Louis’ Scottrade Center, in a span of five days.
On April 6, the Red Deer, Alberta native turned aside 18 shots and the offense scored three power-play goals to give the Preds a 3-0 victory. Then April 11, Mason stopped all 27 shots he faced and Mike Sillinger scored the game winner at 12:15 of the third period to give Nashville a 2-0 win, and an eight-game season sweep of the Blues.
"In years past St. Louis always abused us," Mason said. "It's kind of unheard of to sweep, but they beat us up in years past."
The shutouts bookended a 2-1 shootout win over the Chicago Blackhawks at the Sommet Center on April 8, meaning Mason stopped 67-of-68 shots in a three-game span. Coming on the heels of the news about Vokoun, it was reassuring for the new number one goalie to know his teammates had his back.
"It means a lot," Mason said after the second shutout. "We as a team knew before about his status a couple days ago. But still, it's important for me to have the confidence of our team. They've been playing awesome in front of me since they found out."
