Dietrich on Tuesday

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When Braden Holtby took some time off in February Aaron Lynch Jersey , playing in only nine of the Washington Capitals‘ 14 games, he finally had a chance to reflect on aspects of his game.

It might seem easy to say being benched in favor of Philipp Grubauer for the first two games of the postseason ignited Holtby’s standout playoff run. But he credits his midseason reprieve for a revival that pushed him and Washington into the Stanley Cup Final against the Vegas Golden Knights. Game 1 in Monday night.

”It was great to just have a break in February where I could really analyze myself in a game, go to work, kind of get back to those roots and just working as hard as I possibly can to figure out different things of myself and the game,” Holtby said. ”This year I think is one of those years where I’ve learned more and soaked in more knowledge than previous years.”

The 28-year-old veteran enters the Final with a 12-6 playoff mark, a 2.04 goals-against average and a .924 save percentage. The Capitals haven’t allowed a goal in 159 minutes, 27 seconds, since Game 5 of the Eastern Conference finals against Tampa Bay – including 157:13 with Holtby on the ice.

Several key members of the Golden Knights are no strangers to Holtby, including general manager George McPhee, goalie coach Dave Prior and defenseman Nate Schmidt, a trio that have been a part of the Capitals organization during their careers. It was Prior who recommended McPhee and company draft Holtby in 2008, when the Capitals made him the second pick of the fourth round (and the 10th goalie taken in the draft).

Holtby said Prior, who has helped Vegas goalie and three-time Stanley Cup champion Marc-Andre Fleury improve aspects of his game this season, taught him ways to analyze his game he would have never thought of.

”He’s obviously one of the best, he helped me a ton,” Holtby said. ”He taught me how to practice correctly Reggie Wayne Jersey , how to really analyze my game honestly and grow in different ways. Before, as a young kid, I just thought if you could just work as hard as you can, that’s how you get better. But there’s strategic ways and he was awesome, very calm, very unbiased watching games.”

Schmidt said a common comparison between Holtby and Fleury is easy to see.

”Both guys are very athletic,” Schmidt said. ”That’s something I knew about Fleury a little bit, and it’s caused a lot of heartache to me over the years. You see that kind of thing with guys who are never out of a save. That’s what makes both of them special players.”

Holtby’s regular-season numbers (2.99 GAA, .907 save percentage) are a career worst. He said taking time to focus on things he never was able to do during a regular season has helped ease his mind and relieve certain pressures he was putting on himself during games.

”Obviously throughout my career of hockey playing, you know that putting too much pressure on yourself and doing too much is never that good,” Holtby said. ”And I got caught up trying to do too much, and it never works too well, and it ended up snowballing.”

Snowballing to the tune of him allowing four or more goals in eight of the 16 games he played during January and February. But over his last eight regular-season appearances in March, he finished 6-2 and never allowed more than three goals. He’s allowed three or fewer goals in 17 of the 18 playoff games he’s played in.

”I’ve learned a lot of valuable things about myself, about the way hockey is now, it’s changed Carl Nassib Jersey ,” Holtby said. ”You have to play a little different than in the past with the speed and the way the game is mostly all about offense now. It’s different that way and I think that was one thing I had to learn.”

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MIAMI — When the New York Yankees visit the Miami Marlins on Tuesday for the start of a two-game series, much of the attention will be on the return of right fielder/DH Giancarlo Stanton.

A four-time All-Star, Stanton starred for the Marlins last year, leading the league in homers (59), RBIs (132) and slugging percentage (.631). He was named the National League MVP after his incredible 2017 season and yet the Marlins dumped his huge contract this past winter, trading him to the Yankees for second baseman Starlin Castro and two prospects.

Stanton, who is battling through hamstring pain, is expecting the unexpected in this brief series in Miami.

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“Walking in and going to the visitors’ side of the dugout (at Marlins Park) will be weird,” Stanton said. “But I’m looking forward to it — (Miami) was a big part of my life. It will be a cool experience.”

Yankees manager Aaron Boone said he expects this to be emotional for Stanton.

“He’s going back to a city where he grew up in a lot of ways,” Boone said. “He came up through their system, made the major leagues and became the face of their franchise.

“From what I’ve seen of him the past four or five months, I think he will handle it pretty well.”

Stanton, whose OPS is down from a career-best 1.007 last year to .896 this season, is batting .285 with 26 doubles, 32 homers and 80 RBIs in 123 games.

He is being relied on more than usual at the moment because the Yankees are without three injured starters who combined to hit 110 homers last season — catcher Gary Sanchez, shortstop Didi Gregorius and right fielder Aaron Judge.

Sanchez (groin injury) could return by the end of this month. Judge (fractured right wrist) will be out until at least early September. Gregorius Jacob McQuaide Jersey , who has a left-heel contusion, could return this week but likely not Tuesday.

“There’s nothing broken, but he’s got a significant bruise,” Boone said of Gregorius. “There is swelling in there.”

Perhaps those injuries might level the playing field a bit between the Yankees (78-46, second place in the American League East) and the Marlins (50-76, last place in the NL East).

Tuesday’s pitching matchup features a battle of right-handers — rookie Pablo Lopez (2-3, 3.79 ERA) for the Marlins and veteran Masahiro Tanaka (9-4, 4.03) for the Yankees.

Lopez, 22, struggled in his most recent start, allowing six runs in 5 1/3 innings in a loss to the Atlanta Braves.

A 6-foot-3, 200-pounder from Venezuela, Lopez has a respectable WHIP of 1.17 in his eight major-league starts.

But since making his big-league debut on June 30 with a win over the New York Mets, Lopez has never had either three consecutive poor starts or three straight quality outings. What Lopez is or can be as a pitcher has yet to be determined.

Tanaka, a 6-3, 215-pounder from Japan who turns 30 in November Nickell Robey-Coleman Jersey , is much more established, posting a 61-32 record and a 3.62 ERA in five major-league seasons.

He is one victory from his fifth consecutive double-figure-win season. Batters are hitting .232 against him this season, and his WHIP is 1.12.

Tanaka has been much better on the road than at home this year, posting a 6-0 record and a 3.86 ERA when not inside Yankee Stadium. He is 3-4 with a 4.27 ERA at home.

That could bode well for Tuesday’s start. However, Tanaka wants to reverse a trend that saw him dominate in July (2-0, 1.75 ERA) but struggle so far in August (0-3, 5.17 ERA in three starts).

Watch out for Marlins first baseman Derek Dietrich on Tuesday. In six career at-bats against Tanaka, he is batting .667 with a home run and two RBIs.

As for the Yankees’ lineup without their injured stars, expect second baseman Gleyber Torres to slide over to shortstop. Neil Walker will likely start at second base. Catcher Austin Romine has passed concussion protocol and should start behind the plate.

New York’s outfield, left to right, could be Brett Gardner, Aaron Hicks and Stanton.

“I think we’ve responded well,” Stanton said when asked about the injuries. “It’s a good test for us to play well when we are not at our full potential. I think other guys will step up.”

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