Fernandez

WILMINGTON, Mass. — Recent history proves, it takes two goaltenders to win the Stanley Cup.

Over the course of four best-of-seven series, something is bound to happen to the most vulnerable, most shot-at player on the ice. It’s well-documented that Carolina wouldn’t have won the ’06 Cup without Cam Ward coming off the bench with a Conn Smythe-capturing performance in relief of Martin Gerber. And Anaheim and Detroit both used both their netminders as well to take home the game’s ultimate hardware.

During the majority of the 2008-09 season the Boston Bruins, who open their playoff run Thursday night against Montreal, enjoyed the employ of a top-notch goaltending tandem. With help from an outstanding system and strong play by the guys in front of them, Tim Thomas and Manny Fernandez captured the Jennings Trophy. A back problem that crept up on Fernandez in January sidetracked his season and left Thomas to build his Vezina Trophy-worthy resume for the bulk of the stretch run. But Fernandez returned late in the year with mixed results in his effort to round back in form. So should the Bruins need him, would Fernandez be ready to contribute to a potential run to the Cup?

“I hope so,” Fernandez said today after the Bruins practiced at Ristuccia Arena. “The one year that they used me in Minny (a run to the conference final in ’03), it was the same way. It was a surprise, it came unnoticed, I was unprepared. So it’s nothing different.

“The best you can do is practice hard. This is a new season, so hopefully you turn the page, became amnesic, forget about the past and just move forward. There’s no sense on dwelling on what happened the past few weeks, the past few months. The best I can do is just put it behind me and just move forward.

“Regardless, I need to put on a smile and we all need to be on the same page for this thing to work. I’m totally on the boat. Whether it’s playing or talking to Timmy and getting prepared mentally and to help him out or helping the D’s out, whether it’s different stuff, I want to be accountable, I want to be part of this team.”

So even if he doesn’t get in the lineup, Fernandez thinks he can factor into a successful run. That’s good to know because many a team has fallen victim to the in-fighting that can arise when one goaltender gets all the playing time and all the glory. Fernandez, however, has stayed positive all year long. And while giving most of the credit to Thomas’ play, Fernandez agreed that all in all he’s had strong year — especially considering the knee injury that hampered him the previous two campaigns.

“Timmy needed his break here and there. Somebody’s got to come in and do the job. (Alex Auld) was here last year, I was here this year, it’s been a good year,” said Fernandez. “Being around Timmy, he’s a great guy and it’s been good going through this together and kind of talking about it. We’ve changed a few little things but I think overall our defensive team has been really strong.”

That defensive game will have to continue to be a strength if the Bruins are going to make their No. 1 seed in the East count for something. And Fernandez might find himself in the thick of it somewhere down the road.