Question about young goaltenders?

Question

What do you think is better for the development of a young goalie (Carey Price inspired question), to start 15-20 games in the NHL or to start 65-70 games in the NHL?
Like I am Telling- I would really value your input on this one as well.
I have my opinion (AHL) but I would like to see what others think in best.

Answer 1

I think the minors are a better option for development purposes due to a variety of reasons. You get used to the grind of playing and travelling, you learn in a more instructional environment and you minimize weaknesses before taking the next step.

There just seem to be too many cautionary tales of young guys that have their bodies or psyches beaten down from being exposed to the NHL at too young an age. Think of a Blackburn or even a Carey.

The guy wins the Vezina, the league solves him the next year and his career goes into a tailspin. If he was pushed to improve his lateral movement at a lower level of play, he may have been spared the anguish.

It's hard for a coach or GM to show patience or forsight in the face of intense, immediate pressure, but it's the right thing to do.

Answer 2

Bob I would say the best thing is to put him in the minors after a few good starts because if he stays up and doesn't play or plays sporadically it isn't fair to the goaltender. Whereas in the ahl he would be an every day starter. Plus in the long run when he is an nhl starter he will have experience from the minor leagues and his nhl starts as well. A lot of the ahlers become nhl players. So he could become familair with certain players tendencies. Also if he got demoted back to the ahl, if he performed well down there he could be brought back up. Psychologically it would affect him more to be on the bench doing nothing than playing in the minors.

Answer 3

Good Question

Historically I think a year in the AHL is the way to go. A lot of the goalies who came in too early, Thibault-maybe MA Fleury etc, had problems adjusting and their development was delayed. That being said I think you have to look at it on a case by case situation. If the guy is ready then keep him in the NHL.

With respect to Carey Price, had he not won the Calder cup for them last year he starts in Hamilton no questions asked. However he has proved that he can dominate at that level so it makes sense to see if he is NHL ready.

Huet is an unrestricted free agent next year, I don't know if the Habs have any plan of resigning him or if he wants out with Price waiting in the wings. As Habs mgmt, if you think Huet is gone next year then having start 15-20 games in the NHL this year starts making a whole lot of sense vis a vis him being ready for next year.

If it looks like he is not getting enough work they can send him down for a few starts in Hamilton periodically as both he and Halak can go up and down without being exposed to waivers.

Finally there is always the Roy factor in Mtl, Roy won the calder cup as a late season addition then came up to Mtl the next year and won the Stanley cup as 20 year old.

Age cannot be the determining factor, readiness matuity level etc must be considered. Because belfour was not ready is not a reason to keep him in the minors, becausse Roy was is not a reason to keep him up- It depends on the situation of each case.

Answer 4

I would say that the average goalie would benefit more from staying in the AHL longer since goaltenders usually take longer to develop. I think the time in the minors helps to mature and develop the younger goaltender into a better NHL goalie.

Answer 5

The minors are a great idea, and it did wonders for both Belfour and Brodeur.

In 1988-89 we took Belfour and threw him to the masses and he responded with 4 wins and a GAA of 3.87 in 23 games. We sort of gave up on him (well, not sort of, he dropped behind the Pope on the depth charts) and we sent him back to Saginaw of the IHL before the Christmas bonuses were handed out. He was 'just' average there and the next year we decided that Waite was the better man and Belfour played for some chap named King for Canada's national team. Again, just average. Fortunately for Belfour, during the Cup run, every Black hawk goalie came up lame, and Belfour was pressed into action - and did well, The following season, Belfour played OK and was rewarded with the Calder, the Vezina, the Jennings, First Team All-Star, NHL All-Rookie team and a stinky playoff performance.

Belfour was fortunate in that he played in the NCAA (again, I can't see Ed in lecture) which is a faster game than the CHL. The 2 years in the IHL and the year with Dave King really helped him to adjust to the speed of the NHL. Having Tretiak as his goalie coach didn't hurt either.

Brodeur had a similar path, after jumping straight from Saint Hyacinthe to New Jersey in 91-92, he spent the entire 1992-93 season in Utica. In 1993-94 he had a Belfouresque rookie year.

Answer 6

I think the perfect thing to develop a goalie is to place him in the AHL or collage hockey as the starter for 2 to 3 years(bringing him up to the NHL maybe 2 to 3 times a year so he can get use to it).
If you start him in the NHL full season he might get depressed because of his lack of skill.(and may never recoup from that)
By letting him play as a back up 15 to 20 games he might get stuck in a rut and get use to being a back up and stay like that for most of his NHL career **Cough Cough Manny Legacy

This are just my opinions.

Answer 7

I personally feel that it would be best for them to get more reps in at the AHL level. The goalie position relies heavily on the mental state of the goalie. Confidence and frequent exercise are huge factors to a goalie's success. I would keep him in the minors and let him stay sharp. If he isn't ready to start at the NHL level, or even platoon every-other game, then he isn't ready. And it won't do him any good sitting there on the bench, wondering when he will get to play. I think it would be better for him to focus on hockey ... any kind, at any level. That's just what I think though.

Answer 8

i think a year or two in the minnors would help in the development dept and also in the maturing department its the same for any player the need to start in the minors with the exception of a couple players then once the do make it to the nhl i think that the should be a back up playing about 20 games or so depending on how poised they are and how they do in the Sv%, GA, Wins departments and then depending on the teams coaching staff ect. he could possibly be the starting goalie

Answer 9

Maturity is one of the biggest factors for goaltenders, much more so than for a forward. LITY used Belfour as an example but attending college can be a big plus for any goaltender. Mike Richter, Curtis Joseph and Rick DiPietro are other good examples. All four left school early, but spent some time in school. Giving the goaltender an opportunity mature, develop as well as gain experience and confidence is almost always a good idea. If I were a GM, I would prefer to go the minor league route to accomplish that rather than having them ride pine with my big club. They will see more shots and hopefully acheive the things I mentioned above.

Answer 10

Habs have an abundance of good young goalies (again). And you never know when they might send Price down to get in a few games but with their track record with good goalies it's hard to knock them.
I think for every guy you have to tailor the program to fit him. Some will thrive and some will wilt. Not every goalie makes it to the top despite what all the scouts see in them (ie: Waite - right LITY?) There are few can't miss goalies. It such a hard position to play and only goalies really understand goalies.
I think the Habs should put him in for three or four straight and see how it goes. If he's okay then they should stick to the status quo and if he looks overmatched they send him down for another year to get some playing time and build his confidence.