It was a bright moment in a roller coaster twelve months for the Nashville Predators franchise as goaltender Pekka Rinne accepted the Vezina Trophy at the 2018 NHL Awards held in Las Vegas.
The Predators had just completed their 2017-2018 regular season with a 53-18-11 record - good enough for 117 points and the NHL Presidents' Trophy. The previous season Nashville made their debut in the Stanley Cup Finals losing in six games to the Pittsburgh Penguins. It seemed like the franchise was on the right trajectory for another championship run in 2018 when the Predators were eliminated in the second round by the Winnipeg Jets.
Pekka Rinne won the Vezina over Jets goaltender Connor Hellebuyck and Andrei Vasilevskiy of the Tampa Bay Lightning on that night five years ago. Rinne finished 2017-2018 the fifth best goals against average with 2.31, a high ranking .927 save percentage, and ultimately the Vezina Trophy. However, the playoffs in 2018 were another story for the Finnish goaltender.
In the Predators first round series against the Colorado Avalanche, Rinne earned a respectable .909 save percentage. The second round against the Jets was a very different story. Rinne and the rest of the Predators roster struggled at home in Bridgestone Arena. On home ice, Rinne earned an .848 save percentage and a rough 4.93 goals against average. The Jets' Mark Scheifele alone scored seven goals on Rinne in that series - a third of the pucks that went past him in the frustrating second round loss.
Postseason disappointment aside, Rinne was visibly moved when giving his acceptance speech after hearing his name called. The usually reserved Finn choked up as he thanked David Poile, the fans in Nashville, and his family.
Rinne went on to play another 122 games for the Predators before announcing his retirement on July 13, 2021. His final seasons were marked by a midseason head coaching change, COVID affected seasons, and the emergence of backup and close friend Juuse Saros as the starter in net. Rinne holds the franchise records for career goalie games played, goalie minutes played, goalie wins, and shutouts. The statue of Pekka Rinne dedicated on March 25 of this year stands outside of Bridgestone Arena as a testament of his value to the Nashville Predators franchise and the Nashville community.
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