The NHL All-Star break is upon us, and look who's on top of the standings? The Philadelphia Flyers. I can't remember the last time the Flyers where at the top of the East for this long, let alone a top the NHL. It's pretty amazing how well this team has been playing.
But this entry is not how well the Flyers are playing, because there's plenty of articles that beat me too it and I don't want to beat a dead horse. I'm more interested in the goalies this year. I find it amazing, how goalies of last year who've not been good, have been great, and last year's top goalies are not living up to their level of play this year.
First, we'll take a loot at, of course the Flyers. #33 and #35. Notice there isn't a #49 there. We'll get to that in a second. But Sergie Bobrovsky and Brian Boucher are playing so well right now. Bobrovsky, or Bobs as we now know him in Philly, came out of no where in training camp. His intense preparation before each game has got not only fans turning heads, but teammates alike too. He's a rookie, and yes, he still has flaws, but you wouldn't know this is first year in the NHL, IN NORTH AMERICAN Hockey if you saw him play. This kid has been linked to a name, we all cherish in Philly, Pelle Lindbergh, and we all know how great that young goalie was before his untimely death. Bobs can only get better in time, that's scary, he already has 21 wins this season, launching him into 4th (I believe, under Hexy, Lindbergh, and Parent) in wins as a rookie goaltender.
Let's not forget about Brian Boucher neither. This guy deserves a ton of credit, Boucher, in his third tour in Philly (second tour was with the Phantoms in 2007), is playing damn good goaltending. Remember when how he was awesome in his rookie season, and then just became sub-par in the following two seasons? He was traded away to Phoinex for some guy named Robert Esche? Yea, well I think Boosh's rookie spirit has came back, because after being shaky all last year, he's been rock solid. I mean, this guy is a vetern goalie, who's been around. He played with 4 other teams; Phoenix, Chicago, Calgary, Columbus, and San Jose, before resigning with the Flyers last year, as Ray Emory's back up (then Michael Leighton's back up and well we know how that story went). This year is a different year as he's played equally as well with the young Russian, Bobs. With 20 games played, he has a 11-6 record, with a .916 save percentage, and a 2.14 Goals Aganst Average.
Elsewhere around the NHL, we have saw some surprises thus far in the season. What stands out in my mind the most is how the playoff teams from last year have changed. Montreal, Philadelphia, Boston, San Jose, Chicago, and Nashville. Montreal was praising Jaroslav Halak, his skills were superb. Sending the top seed in the East home after the first round, defeating Mark Andre Fluery and the Pittsburgh Penguins. Then Philadelphia finally solved Halak, ending the Habs dreams of a Stanley Cup Final appearance. In the offseason, the St. Louis Blues inquired about Halak and in the end, he was sent to St. Louis, causing a huge stir around the NHL. This season, Carey Price is manning the pipes very well (remember how he was always questioned just a couple years earlier?) in Montreal, and Halak is doing just the opposite in St. Louis, where he's playing not nearly as well as he was last year. In fact, Halak, was suppose to be a huge part of the St. Louis Blues' team, bringing in a solid proven goalie to help a young team on their upside. So far, with a 17-16-5 record with a .905 SV% and 2.64 GAA, a lot of Blues fans are hoping he'll improve. These are not horrible stats, but considering how well he played last year, we all expected better. Despite these medicore numbers, Halak does have 4 shutouts this year.
In Boston, the Big Bad Bruins still have their same goalie tandem, except surprisingly the "old man" Tim Thomas (I say that very sarcastically) is playing out of his mind! A lot of us thought that Tuukka Rask was going to be the go to guy in Bean Town. Much like the Flyers this year with Bobvorsky, and along with Chicago last year with Antti Neimi, Rask came out of no where last season took the reigns from Thomas and led the Bruins into game 7 of the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals. This year Thomas was strong in training camp and took the #1 job back, with Rask backing him up. Thomas is heading to the All-Star game with a 24-5-6 record with 7 shutouts! Along with a 1.81 GAA, and .945 SV%. Wow! He's truly a well deserved All-Star.
Chicago had the great Antti Neimi in net during their Stanley Cup winning season. Neimi really sprung on late, and turned heads to anyone who payed attention to his play. What's even more crazy is despite backstopping the Blackhawks to their first Stanley Cup win since 1961, Neimi was allowed to walk as a free agent! Chicago was Cap strapped and they simply couldn't afford Neimi's aberration, he was asking for 2 million, they said nope. Instead Chicago is relying on another rookie this season, in Corey Crawford, who has a respectable record that includes 2 shutouts, Marty Turco also signed on to complete the 1-2 punch in the Chicago net. Neimi was left out of a starting role because of this, and it took a while for him to get nabbed up, eventually signing with the San Jose Sharks. The Sharks wanted to go with a cheaper and younger route in net, also signing former Flyer & Olympic MVP Antero Niittymaki. Niitty was signed first, and with Niitty and Neimi in replacement of longtime San Jose netminder Evgeni Nabokov (more on him later).
In Dallas after the Stars let go of Turco they traded for another Finnish goalie (keeping pace with San Jose's Finnish tandem) Kari Lehtonen, of the Atlanta Thrashers. On a side note, kinda funny how Lehtonen and Niittymaki follow similiar paths with each other. Back to the subject, Kari will have better success in Dallas than Atlanta, backed by a solid, proven hockey organization, and playoff contender, he'll see better days for sure. Atlanta is now going with sophmore goalie, Ondrej Pavelec, who seems to be much improved thus far into the season than last year. Atlanta also signed Chris Mason as their back up, who last year was the #1 goalie in St. Louis.
In the Nation's capital, Washington D.C., we have yet another rookie playing some good hockey, Michal Neuvirth from the Czech Republic. He came up and looks like he's taken the reigns from Varlamov. Neuvirth is in his first full season with the Caps, he did play a handful of games last year, I believe it was when Jose Theodore was injured (who's now playing in Minnesota). Just think 3 or 4 years ago, they still had Olaf Kolzig, an old goat who stuck around a bit too long, but was well respected in DC. Now Washington's net looks fresh and bright for the future as they got two solid young goalies, both only 22 years old.
Another big moment among goalies this year, is Marty Brodour. He's played very subpar this year, as has the whole team, but Brodour who has been dubbed "the best goalie ever to step foot on NHL Ice" ( I disagree) playing subpar? Who the thunk it. I think Marty is just showing his age and after all those seasons being a tank, playing in and around 70 games a year, it's finally taking it's tole. With a .895 SV% and 2.84 GAA, that's hardly the Marty Brodour we know of. He should retire soon, don't want be the Brett Farve of hockey, I mean be the new Chris Chelios. Brodour is still playing the majority of the games, while Johan Hedburg is picking up some games also. One's gotta think, doesn't Jersey have a young goaltender waiting in the wings "on the farm" in Albany? There are a few canadates out there, that providing the right time, those include Rask, and Michael Leighton, both proven goaltenders. Both don't want to be the #2 when they are proven #1 goalies. But those are just 2 far fetched ideas.
Speaking of Michael Leighton , we'll come full circle, with the Flyers to end this blog entry. Isn't it funny? the 2 top goalies of the NHL Playoffs last year, are out of the #1 job and not in the city they back stopped to the Cup Final? Leighton goes from hero to zero, his cinderella story ended in Philly, and is now playing with Adirondack Phantoms (Flyers AHL Farm team) as there is simply no room for him up in the big club. Well let's back track here a bit, Flyers started of with Ray Emory, and Brian Boucher, Emory goes down, Boosh backstops the team, but then HE goes down with an injury. Now the back up of Boucher, Johan Backlund is the only guy left, here enters Michael Leighton, as the Flyers claim him off the waivers from Carolina. Leights plays damn well, including in the Winter Classic, Ray Emory returns briefly but ends up having a possible career ending injury to his leg. Boucher returns, and Leights is the Flyers #1 goalie up until he gets hurt the last month or so of the regular season. Boucher leads the team up until Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Semi-Finals when he gets re-injured, Leights comes in back and stops the Flyers to Game 6 of the SCF. He had 3 shutouts in the Boston Series, and was arguably the best goalie in the playoffs. After the season, the Flyers sign him to a 2 year deal, with a nice pay raise. Then he goes off and tells the team he needs surgery for that back, that doesn't sit well with Ed Snider and Homer, I'm sure. Boosh and Bobs are playing too well for Leights to even have a shot at regaining his reigns in net. Once he hits reentry waivers, he's all but gone.
Let's just say if the NY Islanders nabbed him, heaven forbid he reports to them and doesn't go the Nabokov route, refusing to report to the team (because him and Detroit where going to agree to terms, with Detroit needing a solid back up for young Jimmy Howard since Chris Osgood is out for surgery). The Isles need a goalie as Rick Dipietro is, yet again, out with an injury.
So there ya have it the crazy, wacky, goalie circus that took place in the beginning of the season and now is in affect. So if you kept up with me you'll know about half the teams in the league have had no changes, at least not big enough to note about, and the other half had some notable changes. Whatever you do...don't take your eye off that #35 in the Orange & Black, you may miss something!
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