Capitals Netminder Charlie Lindgren Answers The Hard-Hitting Goalie Questions We All Have
Capitals netminder Charlie Lindgren goes 1-on-1 about what it's like to be a goalie.
ARLINGTON, V.A. — There’s no harder position in hockey than being a goalie. You’re the last line of defense, wearing 40-50 pounds of gear, tasked with keeping a small, 3x1-inch disc out of a 6x4 net.
I started playing goalie myself in September, and I’ve learned quite a bit since then. But always wondered quite a bit about goalies. Are they really that weird? What’s the best kind of save to make? How do they feel about putting on all that gear?
I’m by no means an expert. I’m good at writing, but not so good at hockey. I’m the kind of goalie who, when I get in the crease, the opponent readies for a shot and gives me a look like, “You sure?”
So, I went to the guy who will know about goaltending: Washington Capitals netminder Charlie Lindgren, and asked some hard-hitting goalie questions over the course of the season that we all have.
The results are great.
CHARLIE LINDGREN Q & A
Q: “So… What happens if you get an itch? Can’t really just scratch it during play.”
A: “Thankfully, it doesn’t really happen that much. Hopefully, if you do get an itch, it’s on your face. That’s easy, take off the glove and make it happen. Anywhere else, good luck till intermission.”
Q: “Do you ever make a save where you’re like, ‘Heck yeah, I got that?’”
A: “Oh yeah, that happens a couple times a game. A lot of those are like the shoots you see through the screen that maybe you don’t see that you’re fortunate it hits you. Those are the ones you’re always like, ‘Yes’ and thought I was in the right spot.'“
Q: “First word that comes to mind when one gets past you?”
A: “‘Uh oh.’ Yeah, obviously, it happens a lot throughout the year, but I mean, usually you’re bummed out and then you reset pretty quick.”
Q: “Do you ever feel like the Michelin Man when you have all the gear on?”
A: “Oh yeah, 100 percent. You wouldn’t believe the amount of people who tell us that we look so different without our gear. In that, you look like you’re some huge beast and then you take all the gear off and you realize we’re really not that big. A lot of us are usually skinny.”
Q: “What’s the best kind of save to make?”
A: “Honestly, I’m not just saying this, but probably like the cartwheel save against Carolina where you’re going full stacking the pads. Those, especially when it goes in the glove, too, that’s a little cherry on top. Those are probably my favorite ones to make.”
Q: “How would you beat me in a shootout? What’s your go-to move?”
A: “I’d probably go blocker side on you.”
Q: “You and I have talked a lot about hydration. You sweat so much in all the gear, what’s your go-to drink before the game?"
A: “I drink a whole lot of Biosteel. We had the cartons pretty much stacked in this fridge, we got the powder. Last year, I was probably having and I kid you not on this number, a least 20 BioSteel cartons on a game day. I’m down to like 12-15.”
Q: “Sometimes it’s not fair, is it, that everyone else gets to stand up the whole time, but you have to go up and down?
A: “Yeah, I’d say that’s fair. Yeah, I think there’s something wrong with that.”
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