In my time as a Boston sports fan, I cannot recall a more polarizing figure than Bruins goaltender Tuukka Rask. No matter if you thought he was great or if you believed he was a complete choke artist, odds are that you were pretty dug in with that particular opinion. I bring this up tonight since earlier this afternoon, Rask put a pin on his ill-fated comeback attempt (which lasted just four starts) and he retired from the B's after his surgically-repaired hip didn't respond like he wanted it to. There are a few things that we can at least all agree on when it comes to Rask's career: Boston's trade for him-flipping mediocre goaltender Andrew Raycroft to the Maple Leafs in 2006-was one of the great steals in franchise history and he was an outstanding goalie at least when it came to the regular season.
Tuukka had the tough task of backing up then following a legend-Tim Thomas-but over parts of 15 seasons (all with Boston), he put up some wonderful numbers in the regular season: 308-165-66 with 2.28 goals against average, .921 save percentage and 52 shutouts. He was a two-time All-Star (in 2014 and 2020), won the Vezina Trophy in 2014 and combined with Jaroslav Halak to capture the William M. Jennings Trophy (lowest combined GAA) in 2020. Still for many those stats and accolades feel rather hollow since he never won a Cup as a starter (he was Thomas' backup for Boston's last title in 2011 vs. Vancouver). It's tough to blame him for losing in six games to the better Blackhawks in the 2013 Stanley Cup Final but 2019 vs. the Blues was the one that will sting him and his teammates forever since they lost Game 7 at TD Garden to what should have been an inferior St. Louis club that played over its head all postseason long.
Being Finnish also probably helped Rask in some ways to survive here for so long but it also didn't help his cause after tough regular season or especially postseason losses. Other than a well-publicized freak out when he was with the Providence Bruins (AHL) and a few random little incidents in the NHL, Rask was pretty even-keeled on the ice and almost flat-line in postgame interviews immediately after some brutal results. This is another instance where following Thomas who was so emotional was a bit of a curse for Rask. He took his job seriously but unlike many other pro athletes, it was clear that it didn't keep him up at night after he left the rink. While that is a healthy lifestyle choice, it didn't lend itself to desparate Bruins fans that wanted to see a guy that they believed was as passionate about the team as they are, as goofy as that might sound to an outsider.
Reputation can be a strange thing since when you look at Rask's playoff numbers, they are way better than you probably remember: 57-46 with .925 save percentage, 2.22 goals against average and seven shutouts. The ironic part about the heartbreaking loss to the Blues is that he had been Boston's best player throughout that postseason and he seemed to be exorcising many personal demons that is until the entire club fell flat on its face in the worst possible moment. Another thing you must consider when you think about Rask's legacy is that he was here for so long and also during such unprecidented success for both the Patriots and Red Sox. Suddenly, championships were all that mattered and we dumped on any players and teams that couldn't get them, even though the Stanley Cup is the hardest trophy to win in sports. I feel like time away from Rask will make us appreciate him at least a little bit more. We are all excited about Jeremy Swayman's potential but he is unlikely to match what Rask did in his long journey with the B's. Thanks for all the good times Tuukka, we just wish that you had gotten it done against St. Louis and then your whole career in Black and Gold would have a completely different final grade to it.
