Backup Goaltender Kevin Lankinen Is Happy But Hungry in Nashville

Being a good teammate to goaltending partner Juuse Saros doesn't mean Lankinen isn't hungry for his own opportunity. 

"I'm hungry for playing games," Lankinen said. "I'm going for growing my own game and moving forward with my own career as well."

"I think it goes both ways, You can be a good teammate and still be dedicated and passionate at the same time, and that's my mentality."

Head coach Andrew Brunette sees that passion in Lankinen. 

"I see that he obviously loves hockey," Brunette said. "He's very competitive. He wants to play. I think he's upset right now he's not playing and rightfully so. That's why you love him."

It's an interesting position Lankinen finds himself in. He plays behind Juuse Saros who competes best with consistency, while at the same time the franchise invests in young goalie prospect Yaroslav Askarov. With fewer starts than many NHL backups see and the heir apparent to Nashville's goal crease in Milwaukee, Lankinen could feel like he is wasting time. Instead the opposite is true. He takes full advantage of every moment he's given. 

"I think for me I treat practices as my games," Lankinen said. "I train the way I play so whenever I get the nod I don't have to change anything."

"I like to go hard in practice, challenge myself, challenge the other guys and make them better as well as myself."

That mentality helps Lankinen jump into games on a moment's notice like he did in Nashville's tough loss against the Edmonton Oilers on October 17.  In 2022-23, Lankinen got 18 starts in net for the Predators. Brunette already has an idea of how much and when the team will give their backup the nod in net this season.  

Th desire to play more doesn't change how much Lankinen values the working partnership he has with Saros. Lankinen and Saros work closely with goaltending coach Ben Vanderklok, and together they help each other improve. 

"I've learned a lot from Juice [Saros] and Benny the goalie coach," Lankinen said. "I think my personality and the way I carry myself kind of balances out and kind of centers Juuse as well. He knows I am there for him, and he'll be there for me."

Saros agrees that having Lankinen to bounce things off of helps him play his best, too.

"You can share thoughts about hockey and what's going on during the game," Saros said. 

The unique demands of goaltending are a part of Saros and Lankinen's bond as well. 

"Goalies are an island almost," Lankinen said. "Only goalies can really understand what goalies go through, so it's huge to have somebody you can lean on to share some thoughts." 

Their relationship off the ice is as solid as their partnership on the team. Lankinen and Saros are not just teammates but good friends. The Finnish goaltenders attended each other's weddings this summer and spend a lot of time together away from the rink too.

"It's good to have a great goalie partner and a good friend as a partner," Saros said. "It makes the everyday life much better."

"It's happy that we are doing this together again for another year."

What happens after this year remains to be seen. Lankinen is on a one-year deal right now with the Predators. Whatever is next, his goal is to be in net in the future. 

"I think it takes a certain kind of person to be able to handle that," Lankinen said of the pressure of being an NHL goaltender. "For me, I embrace it. I love being a big part of the scoreboard and the wins. It definitely takes a special character to be able to do that in front of 30,000 people every single night."

"I feel like I was born to do what I love to do," Lankinen said. "It's my calling."