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That’s some comment. That’s from the last week of August too. Plans have been crystallized by the last week of August.

Somehow I lost track of The Linden Plan along the way. It’s also exactly how the season is playing out.

Green memorably put his flag down on his goalies with this blunt, constituents-pleasing statement to start the year:

“I like goalies that stop the puck. I don’t like goalies that don’t.”

Neither of his goalies was preferred, he suggested. There was no No. 1 in Vancouver, he said. There were two goalies both ready to try and prove they could be No. 1s.

“We’re going to find out,” Green promised.

So far, we’re not finding out. I mean, we’re finding out Markstrom can be good, and he has been.

The other guy has been better. Flat out better.

But the starts, when both have been available, have been split 10-5 in favour of Markstrom.

Funny enough, that’s just about exactly on pace for a 55-27 division over the course of a season, which is right in the Linden plan.

Was all this pre-ordained?

Is Markstrom the favoured son?

Green said no after the game.

“I think they’re both battling to be No. 1,” Green said.

And then he explained why he started Markstrom.

“Nilly hadn’t played in a while,” Green reasoned. “He played a game, we travelled and we got in late.

“Going back to why I started Marky, that was part of it. We got in at 3 in the morning and Marky hadn’t played in four or five days.”

Markstrom now has a .910 save percentage. Nilsson is at .942.

Goals saved above average is a cumulative number, so it builds the more games a goalie plays.

You can read about it here:

Nilsson is at 4.30 for the season, which was the 15th-best heading into tonight’s game. Theoretically, the more games he plays well, the higher that number will be. He’s only played in five.

Markstrom was at 27th before tonight’s game at 1.08.

Somehow, I don’t think that number went up.

So if this is really an open competition, Nilsson starts Saturday and maybe more.

He’s earned his chance at a run of games.