Preface: In an effort to bring a different perspective than the other hundred + blogs, articles and commentaries on the first round series between the Washington Capitals and the Montreal Canadiens, I will be doing multiple sectional blogs.
In the first instalment of blogs, I analyzed both the Capitals and Canadiens offense and how they will match up against one another.
In case you missed them, here they are:
Follow the link to read my preview of
the Washington Capitals offense.
- http://www.hockeybuzz.com/blog/Steven-Hindle/Offense/98/27668
Follow the link to read my preview of
the Montreal Canadiens offense.
- http://www.hockeybuzz.com/blog/Steven-Hindle/Offense/139/27669
In the second instalment of my pre-series evaluations, I took a look at both teams defense.
In case you missed them, here they are:
Follow the link to read my preview of
the Washington Capitals defense.
- http://www.hockeybuzz.com/blog/Steven-Hindle/Defense/98/27682
Follow the link to read my preview of
the Montreal Canadiens defense.
- http://www.hockeybuzz.com/blog/Steven-Hindle/Defense/139/27683
In the final instalment of evaluations, we finally examine the goaltending.
Follow the link for my take on the
the Montreal Canadiens goaltending.
- http://www.hockeybuzz.com/blog.php?post_id=27700
Goaltending
Montreal Canadiens
Series Starter
Jaroslav Halak
Halak blossomed into the Canadiens starter over the course of the season, partly due to Carey Price’s mediocre run through the opening months, but mainly due to his incredibly strong play through the 2nd half.
Jaro has been truly short-changed over the course of his development as he has been constantly cast aside for other, more tempting top prospects. Not to say that Carey Price does not merit the status he has earned, nor does it mean that the Canadiens have been ignoring the young Slovak netminder. Rather, what it does demonstrate to us is something that a franchise like the Detroit Red Wings thrives on. Finding late round gems that turn into NHL studs is a staple for the Wings, but not many teams have been able to repeat their success.
In Halak’s case, the fact that he was drafted in the 9th round of the NHL entry draft, it’s safe to say that not much was expected from him.
Yet, every step of the way, Halak has been on top of the standings, leading every development league as one of the premiere goaltenders. His success at the ECHL and AHL levels kept his hopes to play in the NHL alive, but no one ever truly expected Halak to turn into the Olympic calibre netminder he is today.
That fortunate turn of events has more or less salvaged the Canadiens up and down season as Halak’s stellar play earned Montreal just the right amount of points to grab the last playoff seed.
The fact that Jaro was, for the most part, ignored through the initial stages of his development only served to make him stronger. He was allowed the time to quietly develop his skills, removing the pressure of being fast-tracked to the NHL. Instead, left to his own devices, Halak’s skills steadily improved and, despite his rather diminutive size, learned to play large in between the pipes.
Strengths:
Jaroslav Halak’s strengths are primarily in his positioning and his reflexes.
As mentioned, he is not a big goaltender, therefore he needs to cover more of the net.
Cutting down angles is harder for Jaro to do in comparison to someone like Carey Price, but what Halak lacks in size, he makes up for in speed.
He is quick, very quick as a matter of fact.
The fact that he has very quick feet and excellent reflex/reaction time are essentially the tools that have made the goaltender he is today.
The tricks he uses to get around his lack of size demonstrate that he is a passionate goalie, willing to do anything to win. A prime example of that is how active he is in locating the point shooter when facing opposing power plays. He bobs his head up and down and around opponents in order to make sure he doesn’t get fooled by any screened shots. As a result, he rarely allows the puck to get out of sight.
Jaro has a very quick glove and, when he is not tired, has excellent rebound control.
Weaknesses:
Despite the many facets of Halak’s game that make him a good goalie, there are certain elements that are of concern.
His Energy levels and his size.
As much as these two factors play a large role in what make Halak such a successful goalie, they are also two variables which may affect his performance negatively.
The fatigue factor will be very important as Halak has never played more in his professional career(at the NHL level) than he has this season. Throw the Olympic Games on top of that and you have a goaltender that has played a lot of hockey. The results of Halak playing more often are clear, he plays better and he wins games.
But how much is too much?
If Jaro can’t keep his stamina up, we end up seeing him play a rather sloppy game. When tired, Halak’s glove hand is beatable. When tired, Halak tends to have brutal rebound control. When tired, Halak reflex time is longer and, due to his smaller time, covers less net.
As you can see a lot of Jaro’s game hinges on his strength and endurance.
As he pushes into his first playoff start ever, the question has to be: does Jaroslav Halak have the energy to be the best player on the ice every night?
We know Halak will be OK under pressure, thanks to his stellar run for Team Slovakia at the Olympics, but the Habs aren’t quite Team Slovakia, so it’s safe to say Jaro will be under a lot more pressure in Montreal.
Advantage:
Between the experienced Jose Theodore and the un-experienced Jaroslav Halak, it’s tough to call who truly has the advantage when it comes to goaltending.
Montreal fans will tell you it’s the Habs, whereas Capitals fans won’t hesitate to tell you that Jose Theodore has played his best hockey since he won a Hart and Vezina for the blue, blanc et rouge.
The reality is that it’s a draw.
Goaltending will be a major factor in this series, but with the Caps riding Jose Theodore’s 24 game unbeaten streak into the playoffs, it’s hard to dispute they don’t have the hot goaltender right now.
In general, it’s easy to assume that Montreal has the best goaltending tandem in the NHL. Both netminders are extremely skilled young players who are only getting better.
In terms of skill, it’s easy to say that Halak holds the advantage over Theodore, if only because he is younger and more agile.
Habs fans will remember back to the days when Jose Theodore was their saviour in nets and Caps fans are starting to get the picture.
Theodore clearly holds the advantage in experience, having played in the NHL for over a decade now.
In the end, we can safely say that it’s a draw between the Capitals and Canadiens starting netminders. We can also likely agree that as much as this series may hinge on the goaltending, neither team will hesitate to switch to their backups if the #1 isn’t getting the job done.
As fantastic as both Theodore and Halak have been this year, there’s no guarantee they will be as reliable in the post-season.
Backup or “1B”
Carey Price
Picked a mere 4 spots behind current Rocket Richard co-winner, Sidney Crosby, Carey Price has been regarded as the Canadiens saviour in nets for going on 3 years.
That is, until now.
Thanks to the emergence of Jaro Halak over the latter course of the regular season, many Habs fans are getting their wish of seeing Carey Price’s development slow down.
Rushed into the NHL, Price quickly vaunted himself to being the top netminder on the Montreal Canadiens by the ripe, old age of 21.
Needless to say, things might have been rushed a bit. But how can you blame the Habs for not believing that the kid that led Canada to a Gold Medal at the WJC’s and then promptly led the Canadiens AHL affiliate, the Hamilton Bulldogs, to a Calder Cup championship, winning the MVP in the process, wasn’t up to the task?
When it comes down to it, he was.
For nearly a year, Price held the Habs top goaltending spot as a 21-22 year old, but it’s hard not hit a wall. Especially when making the transition from a life-time of minor hockey to the big game.
In the end, Price may very well be where he should be, taking his time to mature and develop his game. There’s no question he has all the tools needed to be the next big thing in the goaltending world, many still so, but there’s also no time to rush the kid.
Currently, Halak is the Habs starter for the 1st round, but with Price having played all 4 games against the Capitals this season, one would think that Habs head-coach, Jacques Martin, won’t hesitate to revert to Price if need be.
Strengths:
Price is extremely agile for such a big goaltender. He has a quick glove hand and, opposite to team-mate Jaroslav Halak, fills the net easily.
As mentioned, the kid’s progress has been incredible, but at the same time, it’s hard to fault him for hitting a wall. With time to watch and learn, I can only imagine that Price is getting hungrier.
Another strong advantage for Carey is that he is a winner. He has proven that, when he has an interested and hard-working team in front of him, he is capable to taking his team all the way.
Weaknesses:
Ironically, Carey’s major weakness this season has been goal support.
Had Price gotten the goal support that Halak had gotten, his record would have been much better.
That said, Carey has started strong in games this season, but wasn’t able to hold on, often blowing late leads or allowing a late game-tying goal.
To his credity, his save percentage and GAA were extremely respectable for a goaltender that managed to lose over 20 games.
Carey tends to make mistakes when he is tired, as most goalies do, but they tend to be glove side gaffe’s or slow blocker reactions. Not often is Price beaten between the legs, but, as proven when the Habs tried to ride the young goalie for long stretches, when he gets tired, he makes mistakes.
Advantage:
When comparing the two teams current 1B’s, it’s an easy choice to pick Price over Varlamov.
Price is a higher ranked prospect with more NHL experience and more awards in his trophy case than Varly, but Varlamov has been hampered by injuries this season and saw a potential chance at winning rookie of the year evaporate due to a long rehab process.
In deciding who is the better goalie, it’s safe to say Price is a couple steps ahead of Varlamov, but Semyon is an elite prospect in his own right and has garnered the faith of the Caps fans thanks to his incredible run in last season’s playoffs.
Coming in cold to replace Jose Theodore, Varly stood on his head as a rookie and led the team to a 7th game showdown with the Penguins in the 2nd round.
Since then, the injury factor has caused some discomfort among management and the fans, but Varly is well aware that he needs to be his best moving forward and has taken strides in his last few regular season starts.
I will give the Canadiens the clear edge in backup goaltending, but will not shy away from the fact that both Carey Price and Semyon Varlamov could be the deciding factors in this series.
As strong and as impressive as both Halak and Theodore have been, Martin and Boudreau know they have an excellent fall back plan.
I will be back with a comparison by the numbers later on this evening.
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