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Goalie nods: Halak won’t face Blues, which raises eyebrows

halak2

James OBrien

News and notes from the blue paint...

Halak won’t face ex-mates

Jaroslav Halak won’t be in goal for Washington tonight when the Caps try to keep their playoff hopes alive against Halak’s ex-team, the St. Louis Blues.

The reason why Halak’s been passed over in favor of Braden Holtby, though, remains a mystery.

A piece on CSN Washington suggested Halak was keen to face his old club -- “I played there four years, I know these guys,” he said. “Obviously, I’m looking forward to going back there,” -- but in explaining his decision to start Holtby, Caps head coach Adam Oates suggested the Slovakian netminder actually asked out of the start:

Oates said Halak told coaches he wasn’t completely comfortable facing Blues for the first time since the trade, so they’re going with Holtby

— Katie Carrera (@kcarrera) April 8, 2014


Considering Halak’s been Washington’s goalie of record in 11 of the last 14 games, going with Holtby in tonight’s must-win situation is curious. That said, Holtby did snap the Caps’ five-game losing streak with a 4-3 shootout decision over the Islanders on Saturday.

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