Um, Andrei Vasilevskiy would like to have a word about that slump of his

Years from now, this game will be mostly forgotten.

It didn’t end in the Lightning’s elimination, and it didn’t send them dancing into the night. When turning the pages through future history books, this will look like just another game in another first-round encounter for a franchise that has had bigger moments than this.

But you’ll know better.

You’ll recall the sniping that followed Game 4. You’ll remember the defiance in Andrei Vasilevskiy’s tone at the practice between games. You’ll tell anyone who cares to listen that the resilience of Tampa Bay’s goaltender was something to behold on a Thursday night in April in Toronto.

With seemingly everyone not inside the Tampa Bay locker room questioning his performance in the early games of the first-round series against the Maple Leafs, Vasilevskiy responded in Game 5 with the kind of night that has earned him awards and accolades for much of his nine-year career in the NHL.

And now, after the 4-2 victory, the Lightning and Vasilevskiy will survive for at least one more game.

“They dug their heels in tonight. Who really dug his heels in tonight was the goalie,” Lightning coach Jon Cooper told reporters at Scotiabank Arena. “His name has come up a lot for various reasons over the last couple of days and I think he proved he can handle the high shots.”

That seemed like a direct shot at Red Wings coach Derek Lalonde, who spent four years at Cooper’s side as an assistant coach. Lalonde suggested on a Canadian television network that the Lightning discovered a few years ago that Vasilevskiy was one of the worst goaltenders in the league when it came to tracking long-distance shots.

Was Lalonde wrong? I seriously doubt he made that up. And the evidence through the first four games of the series seemed to validate his point because the Leafs have been attacking Vasilevskiy from the point and have scored on at least two shots of more than 50 feet.

Still, it was unusual to hear a sitting NHL head coach to offer such a specific criticism on national television and particularly against a goalie with two Stanley Cups, and Conn Smythe and Vezina awards in his trophy case.

Vasilevskiy has been beaten in the playoffs before. He’s been outplayed by other goalies in other postseasons.

But I’m not sure he’s ever faced the barrage of criticism that followed back-to-back blown leads in the third period of Games 3 and 4.

That was part of the backdrop going into Game 5, and now it is part of the Vasilevskiy lore. Because the Lightning goaltender responded with a strong, if not brilliant, game against Toronto on Thursday night.

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There was the deflection of a Calle Jarnkrok shot, then the sprawling block of the rebound in the first period. There was the way he held his ground on Mitch Marner’s breakaway in the second period, and the way he smothered another Jarnkrok shot minutes later.

Most notably, it was the way he refused to give in after the Leafs cut the lead to 3-2 on a 6-on-5 situation that was looking eerily similar to the Game 4 collapse in Tampa.

“Big-time saves, he makes them. He’s not scared, he’s not shy. You know if he needs to do the splits, do a windmill glove save, he’ll do it,” Lightning forward Nick Paul told reporters Thursday night. “He’s unbelievable. He’s one of the best … he is the best goalie in the league. I think he showed it (Thursday).”

The victory was Vasilevskiy’s 65th in the NHL playoffs, which ties him with Hall of Famer Dominik Hasek for 12th in league history.

So was the criticism earlier this week valid, or was Vasilevskiy a victim of too many defensive lapses in front of him? I think it’s possible for both scenarios to be true. Four of Toronto’s nine goals in Games 3 and 4 were on deflections that no goalie could be expected to save.

But it’s also true that Vasilevskiy had done nothing extraordinary to keep the Lightning from blowing leads in consecutive games. And when your business associates say you’re the best in the world, there is a certain expectation that he was failing to maintain.

That’s what made Game 5 so special.

It not only rescued Tampa Bay – temporarily, at least – from the brink, but it also showed a certain resilience in Vasilevskiy. It offered a glimpse into the pride of a 28-year-old star unaccustomed to the insults and jabs of the previous 48 hours.

Will it matter in the bigger picture of Vasilevskiy’s career?

I suppose that depends on Game 6. And, perhaps, Game 7.

John Romano can be reached at jromano@tampabay.com. Follow @romano_tbtimes.

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