World News – FI – Tuukka Rask breaks silence as she exits 2020 playoff bubble

Tuukka Rask finally broke her silence and addressed the incident that led to her exit from the Toronto playoff bubble

Speaking to Steve Conroy of the Boston Herald, Rask confirmed that his family was facing a medical emergency involving his daughter and that his return to Boston was necessary

“I got a phone call from my wife and my daughter was in a condition that she needed medical attention and she was not doing well,” Rask told Conroy. “At that time I had no choice but to come home It’s that simple If you get a call anywhere like me, it’s a pretty easy decision What bothered me a bit, c is that people thought I had just left because I didn’t like it there I won’t lie to you, [the bubble] was awful But if I had no reason to leave, I wouldn’t be not gone, obviously

« There is that But my daughter is fine now, the family is fine and I feel good When I got home they were happy to have me home and things got back to normal pretty quickly, so I knew I had made the right decision It had nothing to do with hockey or the bubble It was just the fact that I had to make that decision and I stand by it « 

Rask went on to tell Conroy that returning to Toronto would have come with a government-imposed 14-day quarantine for crossing the border after returning to the United States, and that it just wasn’t not an option given her daughter’s situation

As for what happened in Toronto, Rask made the human choice of family over hockey

This is a perfectly understandable choice for anyone who is not a complete psychopath, and should be viewed separately from Rask’s obvious disinterest in what he described as a «  horrible  » bubble They are not to distance the same, and it’s downright disgusting to suggest that Rask and the Bruins use his child as a pawn to avoid criticism. (Obviously the Bruins wouldn’t sign off on this strategy, and Rask wasn’t afraid to tell you he was in the bathroom when the B’s had to fight for their life in the playoffs in 2016. Sorry to say, conspiracy theorists, I think we’re all way beyond the point of thinking they’re going to cover it up)

Probably the biggest misstep in all of this comes down to Don Sweeney’s first statement on the situation, which indicated that there was no emergency at home. It is possible that Sweeney does not know the full extent of the situation, and it is also possible, if not likely, that Sweeney did not want to release the details to the general public. I mean, he barely likes to tell you if a player has a no-trade clause in their contract, so it’s not hard to imagine him telling you to go viral if you ask about a sick child.

But speaking with Conroy, Rask, who has over a year on his current contract, also noted that the Bruins are the only team he wants to play for, and that while rumors may swirl, he doesn’t. Sweeney also did his part to (apparently) calm trade speculation, stressing the importance of Rask, 33, to the club

« In fact, our staff have contacted Tuukka and as I said before they continue to play an important role in planning our list going forward, » Sweeney said last Monday. « I think from my knowledge he finished second in the Vézina poll and we feel very, very comfortable with our goalkeeper situation. »

Rask went 26-8-6 with a 212 goals against average and 928 save percentage in 41 games in 2019-20

Tuukka Rask