Luongo and Fleury: Why I Think They Might Have A Problem Getting #1 Back!

By all accounts, Roberto Luongo and Marc Andre-Fleury have had great careers. Both seem to have a shot at the Hall Of Fame (Fleury has won 3 Stanley Cups, Luongo has been on 3 international championship teams), as both are closing in / past the 400 win mark. Luongo also has 74 shutouts, just two less than Tony Esposito. Not bad company.

So the 2017/18 season started out with each as THE man in the crease. Fleury seemed a lock for sure, as his Las Vegas Golden Knights were an expansion team and there was no one else around with the chance to take him off the #1 charts.

But then injuries struck him, and later, Luongo.

Fleury held the fort for 4 games, as him numbers were good: 3-1-0, 2.48, .925! Hey, job's his right? Not quite. A bad concussion that he has yet to return from in a loss to Detroit October 13th game, has allowed others to step in.

As I mentioned before, Vegas has used 5 goalies (So far) this season. But none were in Fleury's class. But then PK Subban's brother Malcolm, with all of 2 NHL experience with the Bruins, found his way into the crease, and wonders never ceased.

In 9 games (1 no-decision), Subban is 6-2-0, with a 2.27 GAA and .923 S%. Maybe it's all a fluke, but the guy has yet to come down to earth. Is Fleury's job in trouble. According to Hockey-Reference, it's possible a return in soon, but he'll have to battle it out with the kid for his spot. At this point, some of the fluke part of Las Vegas' surprising start is starting to wear off. The team is currently (Dec 8, 2017) 17-9-1, good enough for 2nd place in the competitive Pacific. Why not try to make the playoffs? With this kind of goaltending depth, the team is likely to alter Fleury and Subban since Malcolm has proven he belongs in there. Oscar Dansk, the other hot goalie, is down with an injury, too, but went 3-0-0 with a shutout for good measure. Gotta wonder if he is in the equation for this season.

Luongo was cruising and James Reimer was doing some winning and losing in the Florida Panthers' crease this year. Reimer won his 5th game last night, 6-4. Okay, not his best performance, but where is Roberto? Luongo (6-6-0) has been hurt and expected to be on the shelve for anywhere from two to five weeks.

James Reimer took it all in Toronto, and loved playing their. Okay, he's not the most talented goalie in the world, fine. But he always gives you 100%. He'll battle it out right down to the final buzzar. Certainly, he is still young, just 29 (Compared to Luongo, who is 38), but nonetheless, burst on to the scene way back in 2009/10. His experience in Toronto no doubt prepares him for the "Must win every game," expectations, but forget about that, he's coming into his own: 40-36-15, 2.60, .916) in the last two seasons plus 2017/18 (98 games). I think this is the type of situation where he'll really want to show you what he's made of. In his last half-season in Toronto, he wanted it. Same thing in his first. Why would this time be any different? With Luongo's age a factor, and a determined 1B goalie, Roberto might be fighting for that #1 position for the rest of the season when he returns. Don't be surprised if he's riding the pines half the time should Florida be in playoff contention. Reimer, don't forget, played in 43 games last year, more than half the season.

References

"Official Site of the National Hockey League” | NHL.com. National Hockey League. Web. 8 Dec. 2017. <https://www.nhl.com>

NHL.com. “Rotoworld - Fantasy Baseball, Basketball, Football, Baseball and Hockey. Draft Guide, News, Projections, Cheatsheets, Depth Charts And More.” Team News - Rotoworld.Com. Web. NBC Sports, 8 Dec. 2017, <;www.rotoworld.com/teams/nhl/vgk/vegas-golden-knights>

Sports Reference LLC. Hockey-Reference.com - Hockey Statistics and History. Web. http://www.hockey-reference.com/. Web. 8 Dec. 2017.

Why I Think The Price Is The Right Guy...

...to send to Sochi!

I was reading the lastest Sportsnet magazine about Carey Price. I didn't manage to finish it. But I think Price is a great candidate to play goal for Canada. Maybe not the number 1 goalie, but 1B or even a 1A.

I should offer a few disclaimers:

Do I Roberto Luongo should go? Based on his play, and the way he handled the situation last year with the Canucks, yes! I don't want to brag, but remember what I said last season? Oh yeah, who was in net in 2010? Exactly!

How about Mike Smith? Tough situation for him too. But there he is, night after night. Hey, if we need a goal, he can even do that!



Okay, so now we have three pretty good goalies. Liking our chances?

But here's why I like Price (and Luongo got hurt his last game for good measure). Remember about what I said about Randy Cunneyworth having the worst job in hockey? I think Price has the second worst!

Your a goalie in Montreal and it's a whole new ballgame. Believe me, there is no, "meaningless regular season" games in Montreal. You always get compared (unfavourably, of course) to names like Vezina, Hainsworth, Durnan, Plante, Dryden, Roy. Somedays, you just can't win!

But Price is played well this year and is showing a lot of poise. Here are his numbers and his league rank:

Wins: 17 (6)

Shots Against: 906 (4th)

Saves: 844 (4th)

Save Percentage: .932 (6th)

Goals Against Average: 2.10 (8)

Shutouts: 2 (9th)

He may not be there are far as leading the league in any categories, but he's almost there in a lot of places. Price is also 6th in games played and 6th in minutes played. So he can handle the load.

The big knock against him is his lack of postseason success. Okay, perhaps Carey doesn't have it at the NHL level. Fair enough. But what about the next highest level? AHL!

Back in 2007, all Price did was lead the Hamilton Bulldogs to the Calder Trophy. Oh, that wasn't the only hardware Carey skated off with.

He also won the prestigious Jack A. Butterfield Trophy as the MVP of the playoffs. I know, that's a long way from the Conn Smythe award. But Price was just the third teenager ever to win it. He had the poise as a teenager. If he's in net for Canada and Carey has it, it could be a golden moment to talk about for years to come!

Why The Canucks Keeping Luongo Is Actually A Good Thing!

I think that the Canucks keeping Luongo makes sense.

There, you read it.

The thing is, while the Canucks have played well, Vancouver is looking at an uphill climb from now until the playoffs. See, here are the standings:

1)      ‘Hawks:  62 points, 10 games left

2)      Ducks: 57 points, 9 games left

3)      ‘Nucks: 48 points, 10 games left

4)      Kings: 48 points, 9 games left

5)      Sharks: 47 points, 10 games left

6)      Wild: 46 points, 10 games left

7)      Blues: 44 points, 11 games left

8)      Red Wings: 43 points, 9 games left

9)      ‘Yotes 40 points, 10 games left

10)   Stars: 39 points, 10 games left

11)   Oilers: 39 points, 10 games left

12)   Blue Jackets, 39 points, 9 games left

13)   Predators, 38 points, 8 games left

So the ‘Nucks are a long (or a “Luong”) way from clinching the playoffs with things still tight. Worse still, Minny, as noted, are just 2 points back, meaning the Canucks could still slide to 7^th place if the Wild knock them out of first. I don’t think facing Anaheim or Chicago in the first round is a good idea, do you?

The thing about goaltending, is, mentally, it’s the hardest position in sports. Focus, concentration, whatever you want to call it, you need it for 60 (or more) minutes a night. Then you need even more in the playoffs, as that next goal can change the game or the Series in the opposite direction.

It’s just so much to ask one person to do it, even in the regular season. I’ve read several books on the famous 1972 Series between Canada and USSR, and one thing that struck me is how Canada used two goalies and the Soviets used one.

Now, all three goaltenders that played in that Series made the Hall Of Fame. Think of Canada’s two goalies, Ken Dryden and Tony Esposito. Dryden led the league in games played in 71/72, in addition to winning Calder Trophy for Rookie Of The Year (After winning the Conn Smythe in 1971. Wake me up when someone else does that). Esposito was 1, 2 or 3 in games played from 72/73 till 80/81. Plus he was 3^rd in 70/71 and 4^th in 69/70.

But coach Harry Sinden was adamant that the mental demands of playing goal were too much for either of them for 8 games. So it was split down the middle 4 goals each. Dryden may have struggled in his first two games, but played well in the last 2, after Canada had fallen behind 3-1-1 in the series. Tony played well, pretty much in all 4 games.

Tretiak played well, I’d say, until game 5, which the Soviets won anyway. But, you could just see it, Canada had figured him out. The Soviets stayed with him the rest of the way, and lost the final 3 games, giving Canada one of it’s all time great international hockey moments. I rank this ahead of the 1987 Canada Cup and 2010 Olympics. So should you.

Anyways, the point is, I’m not sold on Schneider being ready for the rest of a close playoff race, which could resemble one of those old pennant races in baseball (prior to the expanded playoffs of 1969). Think Brooklyn / NY 1941, Boston / New York 1949, 1978. Boston / Minnesota / Detroit / Chicago /(sort of) California) 1967. It was the team with the best pitching that won.

I have a feeling it will be the team with the better goaltending that finishes first in the Northwest.

There is also the matter of how Luongo has handled it. Oh, I should just go over to @strombone1. Despite his recent comments on his contract, I’ve really loved the way he has handled the whole thing.

(Now, I’m not a conspiracy theorist, but you have to wonder, with no deal done, did the Canucks honestly believe they could get a deal done this season, given Roberto’s contract. The signs here, are for a major offseason move. Maybe all this was just a ruse to get him to play better?)

Luongo has played well. It’s just a recent slump (1-2-0, 3.56, .868) which might have had more to do with Roberto fretting on whether he was staying or going, that brought his numbers down (7-4-3, 2.44, .904)

And come playoffs, who do the Canucks turn to if Schneider falters?


References

Morrison, Scott. The Days Canada Stood Still: Canada vs USSR 1972. Warwick Pub. Group, 1992.

Official Site of the National Hockey League | NHL.com. National Hockey League. Web. 9 April. 2013. <https://www.nhl.com>.

Sports Reference LLC. Hockey-Reference.com - Hockey Statistics and History. Web. http://www.hockey-reference.com/. Web. 9 April. 2014.

NHL 2013, The Stories So Far, Western Conference

Now, on to the other side!

Chicago has soared to the top of the Western Conference standings, (10-0-0-3). Yeah, that's right! The 3 losses? ALL in the shootout!

Kane has 20 points in 13 games, but look at the goaltending: Corey Crawford, despite the 3 shootout losses, has a 1.65 GAA and a .935 S%. Oh, yeah Emery, has won his 3 games, too!

Nashville has road the strong defense, plus hot goaltending combo of Pekka Rinne and Chris Mason to a 6-3-4 record.

Detroit is getting used to life post-Lindstrom, but is also missing 7 players tonight. This could be a long haul.

In St Louis, the hot goaltending of last season has not returned, and the team is struggling to stay about .500. Worst is that Halak is out tonight and Langenbrunner is gone for the season.

Columbus has it's share of injuries, and has fired GM Scott Howson. Despite all that, they are just 4 points out of 8th place. I believe they can turn it around with a few adjustments.

Bruce Boudreau has the Ducks flying high (9-2-1). Is there any point in mentioning that Teemu Selanne is 42 years old and Saku Koivu is 38? Not really, because they are 1-2 in team lead in points.Viktor Fasth has not lost a game, period!

San Jose has three players averaging a point a game or better (Patrick Marleau, Joe Thornton and Joe Pavelski). Antti Niemi is 6-1-3 with a 1.74 GAA and .935 S%. The team's overall record is 7-3-3, and I expect them to challenge for the top spot in the Pacific.

Dallas also has a 40 + year old in Jaromir Jagr. 9 points is 12 games, hey, not bad for someone whose rookie year was 90/91. I'm feeling old just typing that. The problem here is, Jagr is leading the team in scoring. Their goaltending, of Kari Lehtonen and, when called upon, Richard Bachman (btw, that was author Steven King's other name) is looking strong. The Stars need to pot more pucks.

The goaltending in Phoenix has not been up to par enough, although, I think that is the problem with the team that made it all the way to the final four last year. This year, the 'Yotes are 6-5-2. Radim Vrbata leads the team with 11 points. Mike Smith and Jason LaBarbera have got to get better between the pipes!

The defending Stanley Cup Champions are a game under .500 (4-5-2), owing to a low goal total (26 goals for, good enough for 27th place) and Jonathan Quick, who has come back down to earth after his effort last spring. Easier to win it all than to defend it all, says I.

Calgary is one of four teams .500 or below in the Northwest. With Mikka Kiprusoff out for 2 weeks, Mikael Backlund gone a month, plus Lance Bouma gone for the year, the injuries are not far off what Detroit is facing.

Alex Tanguay lead the team in points (11 in as many games). Iginla finds himself sixth on the team in scoring, despite 8 points. So, the good news is the offence is there. But what are they going to do without Kippy for 14 days?

Colorado has no shortage of injuries. Steve Downie is down and out for the season with a knee injury. Erik Johnson suffered a head injury and is out indefinitely. In total, 7 injuries.

Jean-Sebastien Giguere's value seems to diminish with every trade. Semyon Varlamov has taken over in goal and struggled. But on the positive, P.A. Parenteau and Matt Duchene both have 10 points in 11 games. This team, though needs to get healthy or expect a last place finish.

Edmonton is exactly .500 (5-5-3), but also are missing 5 players. Sam Gagner is at a point a game (13 points in 13 games) and Taylor Hall is almost there with 12 points in 13 games. There goaltending has looked quite good, for the most part, as Devan Dubnyk has winning record (5-4-3), a better than it looks GAA (2.58) and a nice high S% .923. But the Oilers have scored just 29 goals, which is 26th overall. There not going to be even .500 if that continues.

Minnesota is another team at .500 (6-6-1). Zach Parise is fitting right in by leading the team in points with 10 in 13 games. Mikko Koivu is second on the team 9 points, 7 of them assists to lead the team in helpers. Ryan Sutter also has 7 helpers, but is looking for his first goal.

The problem here is not injuries, as Minny is missing no one, but rather the goaltending is not up to par. Niklas Backstrom's S% (.913) is a little low. The team has no injuries, so far.

Vancouver, oh yeah! Now the best thing to have happened to Vancouver would have been to unload Roberto Luongo in the offseason, give Corey Schneider the reins and roll! Schneider's first game this season saw him give up 5 goals on 14 shots in 26 1/2 minutes. Luongo came in, and ever since, your guess is as good, if not better than mine, as to who's in net and who's on first.

Luongo has been lights out, 4-0-2, 1.45, .943, Schneider has been good, 4-2-0, 2.36, .921. Now what? The Canucks have said they are prepared to go the entire season with both, until a good deal for Luongo is made. I'm thinking this could be a trade deadline deal. But Schneider has to feel pressure, now, because if his play drops off, who knows? Maybe he's the guy that's gotta go.

As for offence, one of the Sedins' (Daniel) is leading the team in scoring, with 10 points in 12 games. Although the offence, combined, has netted just 35 goals (12 teams have topped that total), the 'Nucks have allowed just 25 goals (No team has allowed less). It will be interesting to see how long Vancouver keeps this up.

References

Official Site of the National Hockey League | NHL.com. National Hockey League. Web. 14 Feb. 2013. <https://www.nhl.com>.

Sports Reference LLC.  Hockey-Reference.com - Hockey Statistics and History. Web. http://www.hockey-reference.com/. Web. 14 Feb. 2013.