BIOGRAPHY
Andrei Vasilevskiy was born July 25, 1994, in Tyumen, Russia. He is a goaltender in the NHL.
He was drafted in the first round, 19th overall, by the Lightning at the 2012 NHL Entry Draft.
Nicknamed the "Big Cat" and "Vasy", he won the Vezina Trophy as the league's top goaltender in the 2018–19 season, and has led the league in wins for five consecutive seasons (2017–18 to 2021–22). He also backstopped the Lightning to back-to-back Stanley Cup championships in 2020 and 2021, winning the Conn Smythe Trophy as the most valuable player in the 2021 playoffs while also holding the NHL record for most wins in single postseason (18 in 2020).
On 26 October 2017, Vasilevskiy played in his 100th career NHL game. In that game Vasilevskiy recorded his 8th consecutive win of the season. This win tied Vasilevskiy with Nikolai Khabibulin for most consecutive wins by a Lightning goaltender. On 30 October 2017, Vasilevskiy recorded his 9th consecutive win, which moved him past Khabibulin for most consecutive wins by a Lightning goalie. This was Vasilevskiy's 10th win of the month of October, which tied him with Manny Legace and Craig Anderson for the most wins in a single season in the month of October in NHL history. On 12 December 2017, Vasilevskiy recorded a 3–0 shutout against the St. Louis Blues at the Scottrade Center. The win was Vasilevskiy's 20th of the season over 25-games, which was the 5th fastest in NHL history. This also made Vasilevskiy only the 6th goalie in NHL history to record 20 wins in 25 games played.
On 10 January 2018, Vasilevskiy was named to the 2018 NHL All-Star Game. This was Vasilevskiy's first selection to an NHL All-Star game in his career. On 22 January 2018, Vasilevskiy recorded a shutout in a 2–0 win over the Chicago Blackhawks at the United Center. The shutout was Vasilevskiy's 7th of the season, which tied him with Nikolai Khabibulin for the most shutouts in a single season by a Lightning goalie. Additionally, Vasilevskiy set the franchise record for most road shutouts in a single season with his 6th of the season. On 27 February 2018, Vasilevskiy recorded his 78th career NHL win. The win moved Vasilevskiy past Daren Puppa for 3rd most wins in Lightning history. On 20 March 2018, Vasilevskiy recorded his 41st win of the season. The win moved Vasilevskiy past Ben Bishop for the most wins in a single season in Lightning history. On 3 April 2018, Vasilevskiy recorded his 43rd win of the season in a 4–0 shutout of the visiting Boston Bruins. The win moved Vasilevskiy past Nikolai Khabibulin for 2nd most wins in franchise history (84). Vasilevskiy's 8th shutout of the season gave him sole possession for the most shutouts in a single season by a Lightning goaltender. On 17 April 2018, Vasilevskiy was nominated for the Vezina Trophy, which is given out annually to the top goaltender in the NHL.
On 14 November 2018, Vasilevskiy suffered an injury while in practice. Two days later, it was announced that he would be sidelined for four to six weeks with a fractured left foot. Vasilevskiy returned 4 weeks later and started his first game back on 13 December, in a home game against the Toronto Maple Leafs. In that game he tied the Lightning team record for most saves in a game with 48 saves, tying a record Ben Bishop set in 2014 and helping the Lightning win 4–1. On 8 January 2019, Vasilevskiy was added to the Atlantic Division roster for the 2019 National Hockey League All-Star Game as a replacement for an injured Carey Price.
On 15 January 2019, Vasilevskiy recorded a shutout in a 2–0 Lightning win over the Dallas Stars at American Airlines Center. The shutout moved Vasilevskiy past Nikolai Khabibulin (14) for 2nd most shutouts in franchise history (15). On 14 February 2019, Vasilevskiy recorded a shutout in a 6–0 Lightning victory over the Dallas Stars to move him into a tie with Ben Bishop (17) for most shutouts in Lightning history. On 16 February 2019, Vasilevskiy recorded a shutout in consecutive games to give him the franchise record for shutouts (18). On 20 March 2019, Vasilevskiy recorded 54 saves in a 5-4 OT win over the Washington Capitals at Capital One Arena to set the Lightning record for the most saves in a game. In a 13-save victory over the Boston Bruins on 25 March 2019, Vasilevskiy moved past Ben Bishop for the most saves in franchise history (5739). On 1 April 2019, Vasilevskiy started in his 207th career NHL game to pass Daren Puppa (206) for 2nd most starts in franchise history. On 19 June 2019, at the 2019 NHL Awards, Vasilevskiy was awarded the Vezina Trophy as the top goaltender in the league. He was the first player in franchise history to win the award.
On 29 July 2019, Vasilevskiy signed an eight-year, $76 million contract extension to remain with the Lightning through the 2027–28 season. On 11 August 2020, he made 61 saves in a five overtime victory over the Columbus Blue Jackets in the opening game of the first round of the playoffs. The 61-save effort was the most saves in a single playoff game in Lightning history. On 25 August 2020, Vasilevskiy recorded an overtime victory over the Boston Bruins in the second game of their second round series. The win moved Vasilevskiy past Ben Bishop and Nikolai Khabibulin for the most playoff wins (22) in Lightning playoff history. On 28 September 2020, Vasilevskiy recorded his first career playoff shutout in the Lightning's Stanley Cup clinching win over the Dallas Stars in game 6 of the 2020 Stanley Cup Finals. With the shutout, Vasilevskiy joined Tom Barrasso as the only goaltenders in NHL history to record their first shutout in a playoff year during the Stanley Cup clinching game. He also set an NHL record for the most minutes played by a goaltender in the postseason (1,708:12) and the most postseason wins in a single season (18). Vasilevskiy continued his stellar play during the 2020-2021 season and helped lead the Lightning to the Stanley Cup Playoffs. In each of the series clinching games, Vasilevskiy earned a shut out. On 7 July 2021, Vasilevskiy posted a shutout against the Montreal Canadiens and the Lightning won the Stanley Cup back to back years. Vasilevskiy posted shutouts in all four of the Lightning series winning games, extending his streak to 5 consecutive series clinching shutouts, tying an NHL record with Chris Osgood and Clint Benedict. On 23 May 2022, Vasilevskiy posted his NHL record breaking sixth series clinching shutout with a 49 save shutout against the Florida Panthers in a 4-game sweep and finished the series with a .981 save percentage, allowing 3 goals over 154 shots.
Tampa Bay Lightning
