Sergei Bobrovsky is at times superhuman, but he isn't going to be perfect every night.
The Blue Jackets would be in a far different position if Bobrovsky wasn't having yet another season worthy of Vezina Trophy consideration. He's not yet 30 years old and already has two to his name, despite not being a full-time starting goaltender in Columbus until the 2013-14 season.
And apart from all that, Bobrovsky has rarely struggled this season. When the Blue Jackets endured serious offensive issues (which arose at different points this season), Bobrovsky's game never wavered. He's been at or near the top of NHL goaltenders in terms of goals saved above average (GSAA), indicative of how important he is to the Blue Jackets.
But Tuesday in Edmonton, he wasn't Super Bob. He was normal.
He flubbed a puck behind his own net early in the game and Connor McDavid made him pay. He went down early on Drake Caggiula's power play goal, leaving the top half of the net exposed for an easy 3-0 Oilers lead. Bobrovsky seemed a bit "off" in the first period but settled in after the Blue Jackets got going.
John Tortorella said post-game on Tuesday that he never considered pulling Bobrovsky because he felt the team owed him a response. With seven unanswered goals, he certainly got one.
"I don't think Bob was dead-on," Tortorella told reporters. "But you know what? We bailed him out (Tuesday). That guy has bailed our asses out so many times this year."
Tortorella has often referred to Bobrovsky as his team's "back bone" and reiterated that stance on Tuesday. Perhaps Bobrovsky's finest work was in the second period: the Blue Jackets had scored five straight goals to take a 5-3 lead, but committed a mistake in the neutral zone that sprung Connor McDavid on a(nother) breakaway.
Bobrovsky with a slick stop on Connor McDavid.#CBJ pic.twitter.com/zbfKjKUg7S
— 1st Ohio Battery (@1stOhioBattery) March 28, 2018
McDavid beat Bobrovsky the first time – the Oilers' 2-0 goal, which came early in the first period – but Bobrovsky stayed with him the second time, closed the five-hole and made a huge save to keep momentum with the Blue Jackets.
Follow 1st Ohio BatteryFacebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube
