What do you think of Ty Conklin?

Question

I used to watch him play with the Green Bay Gamblers (USHL Tier 1) and now he's between the pipes for Buffalo.

Hopefully he's got a good career ahead of him.

Answer 1

1) Conks has a career GAA of 2.61 and a SV% of .902. Not great, but definitely servicable.

2) He hasn't been given much of a chance yet. He has 35 starts one year with the Oilers, and he have a 2.42 GAA (which was par for the course back in 2003-04)

3) He's never been on a very good team. Even last year, the Oilers weren't a very good team--the were okay, and they got hot at the right time, but certainly not a team where a goalie can get easy wins over a whole season. Plus, this year he has been on the Blue Jackets. Never on a good team.

4) He has never had a whole lot of confidence in himself. See: Game 1 of the finals last year. Maybe that will change if a team puts some faith in him. Maybe it will change if he's on a good team. Maybe not.

5) He's 31. Goalies reach their prime laters than other players. I'd say he's still a year away.

If Conks has a few things go his way, he can have a few seasons as a decent starter. He need the chance, and some more confidence for that to really be feasible though. I don't see him backstopping a team to the Cup though.

Then again, Cam Ward won last year. Truly, anything is possible in the playoffs.

Answer 2

He is a good addition for Buffalo as a backup, but I think that no matter how many well he plays before the end of the season, Lindy Ruff will be terrified of starting him in a playoff game, should Miller get hurt.

It is unfortunate, but he is going to have a very hard time living down Game 1 of the finals last year. When Roloson got injured, Conklin made a play behind the net that resulted in the Oilers instantly losing a game they had been in the whole night. After that, the Oilers went with Jussi Markanen the rest of the way and Conklin was unceremoniously shipped off.

The trade to Buffalo should be good for him. He has actually been on a bit of a mission when has seen icetime this year. Earlier in the season he managed to outduel Roberto Luongo for a win, so he does have flashes of brilliance.

However, he is going to have a hard time buliding up enough of a track record over the next couple years as a backup to ever get a job as a starter. The most likely scenario for him would be something like Alex Auld in Vancouver last year, where the starter has a season-ending injury, and then Conklin steps in and overachieves and the coach and GM decide to run with him.

In situations like that, however, the next season can expose that goalie as a one-year wonder. Auld has followed up his strong campaign last year with a pretty dismal one in Florida.

But I hope things work out for Ty. I hope he achieves something great in hockey so that he is not always remembered for Game 1 of the finals last year.

Answer 3

I don't predict a prominent future.

He is already 31 (at the end of this month). He has moved around a lot in the last 10 years, never really sticking anywhere. This is typically for good reason.

A career journeyman, I don't see him stealing much of the show from a guy like Miller, unless an injury comes up. The Sabres no longer have any depth at all in goal, even in the farm system, so Conklin's only real shot to prove his worth is going to come as a result of injury to Miller.

Even if Miller does suffer some sort of injury that is expected to last any amount of time, the Sabres will need to trade for another goalie, pure and simple. The odds that whoever they acquire are weaker than Conklin seem marginal at best.

Answer 4

Getting traded to the Sabres is probably the best thing that could happen for him since he hasn't really clicked on other teams or has been in the shadows behind the primary goalie. Conklin's numbers will dramatically improve if he stays with the Sabres because he finally has a decent team playing in front of him. Conklin is not that bad of a goaltender but I think sometimes he has confidence issues when he is on his game he plays well but sometimes you look at him and after he allows a goal it gets to him and he breaks down. If Miller goes down for some reason in the playoffs the Sabres won't be off to bad since Conklin does have recent playoff experience and will probably show it by playing better.

Answer 5

If the Sabres are smart, they will resign him and develope him rather than let him go to yet another team. I think he could be a big talent. Much better than Roloson when he left Buffalo and split in Minn. before getting the job handed to him in Edmonton. Conks was a top prospect9just like Ryan Miller) but things didn't work out as well for him. He did put up good nubers when Tommy Salo was hurt a few years ago in Edmonton, but was sent packing fro no real reason that I can remember(The Oilers and Islanders, both rush prospects and then give up on them much too quickly)
Let's hope that Conklin will stick with Buffalo.

Answer 6

He is what he is. A career back-up goalie. The better part of his career is actually behind him as he turns 31 next week. He will be lucky to get another 5 years in the league as a back-up. He has competed for the U.S. internationally which is good for a guy who went undrafted. He did have a shot at winning a starting job in Edmonton but he dropped the ball, forcing Edmonton to acquire Roloson. If he does get a chance as a starter again it will be with a poor team.

Answer 7

I'll tell you what, he surprised me last night. When I saw him getting ready to play, I figured he was gonna let up at least 5, easy. But only letting up 3, with as many shots as he had against him, was awesome. 2 of those goals, Miller would have let up anyway, so not bad. I'll wait till he plays a playoff caliber team before I get too impressed though.

Answer 8

He is a serviceable NHL backup goalie. He will not see that much time between the pipes with Miller ahead of him unless there is an injury .

Answer 9

I hope his best years are ahead of him.

Answer 10

Adequate, not necessarily special. He's too inconsistent, but when he's good, he's good.