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To him, Miller was the clear No. 1, which is exactly what Jim said he’d be. Never forget: Make No Mistake. Never forget.

“I think it is good to have it clear, but that doesn’t mean it can’t change,” Willie acknowledged. “It can change in the middle of the year and it can change back.”

But it appears for this change to unfold, Miller was going to have to lose the job more than Markstrom was going to need to win it.

“There were points where Markstrom was challenging,” the coach said. “To make the case, that he was the No. 1. It wasn’t that Miller was playing poorly, it was that Markstrom was playing really well.

“I think there’s a lot to it. I think the way you handle goaltenders is confidence. You give them confidence, and they’ll respond. I think our goaltenders responded this year.”

One thing he did make evident, he doesn’t believe in rushing goalies and thinks they need significant time to cook.

“Markstrom has evolved and if you look at how he’s evolved and how he’s played, I think everyone would say his development has been pretty good. It has.

“You don’t know how guys will go if they get way more (starts). Maybe it will go well. Maybe they will be better. But you don’t know that.

“The one thing is, if you go too quick you can ruin them. If you go too quick and you ruin their confidence and you can set them back.

“Markstrom is a confident goalie. He’s become a very good backup and a guy who is challenging for the No. 1 job. That’s where he’s at.

“Right now, he’s a guy who is challenging for the No. 1 spot.”

BTW, Markstrom is 27. Thatcher Demko is 21. Demko may not be arriving as soon as you think he will be arriving.

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