There was a time when Rick DiPietro was thought to be the franchise player and new face of the Islanders. Then look back at his injury report, which is longer than War and Peace at this point, and wonder what the higher up's were thinking. However, during his healthy years he was pretty solid for the isles. I think at this point he's been out of competition for so long, it's taking longer than hoped/anticipated to find his game.
Dwayne Roloson has been a solid and reliable goaltender throughout his career. He has taken multiple teams to the playoffs, and even carried Edmonton to within one win of the Stanley Cup. Last season with DiPietro going down, again, he beat out Martin Biron for the starting role. While he certainly isn't getting any younger, I think Roloson is capable of at least another season. What the Islanders need right now is a little bit of everything. They're tied for last in the conference and division with the New Jersey Devils and in a three way tie for last in the league with NJ and Edmonton. Injuries up and down the line up have really hurt this team. I still believe my early season writings that this team will be competitive in a few years, but with sub par goaltending and injuries to key players, it looks like another lottery pick for the Islanders
New York Rangers: Henrik Lundqvist (6-5-1, SO 2, GAA 2.67, Save% .918) Martin Biron (1-2-0, SO 0, GAA 2.36, Save%.901)
While Martin Biron has shown that he can be a capable starter and/or a backup as well as an excellent team guy on and off the ice, this is very much "King Henrik"'s team. Lundqvist is one of the better goaltenders in the league, and he has been nominated for the vezina three times in his career. He is also the first goalie to win 30 games in his first five seasons. What should be a cause for concern is the amount of games he starts every season. He's averaging nearly 68 starts a season, and 4 of his 5 seasons have been 70 or more. All this leads me to believe that he's going to worn out prematurely.
With Martin Biron on the bench, the Rangers finally have a backup who is capable of giving Henrik more than 10-12 games off a season. If the Rangers can keep Lundqvist under 65 starts, and get solid goaltending out of Martin Biron, there's no reason to think that the Rangers can't make the playoffs. However, in addition to goaltending the Rangers needs much more consistency up front. Once everyone in NY is healthy this team should be looking a lot better.
Pittsburgh Penguins: Marc-Andre Fleury (1-6-0, SO 0, GAA 3.55, Save% .853) Brent Johnson (6-2-1, SO 1, GAA 2.11, Save% .927)
the biggest question mark going into this season will be the play of Marc- Andre Fleury. The guy was lights out in their cup run, but last season was rather inconsistent. Look for him to have a bounce back year. If he doesn't i think the pens will be in for another early exit
There were never truer words spoken in this blog....maybe. Fleury has certainly continued his struggles from last season early on in this campaign, but the play of Brent Johnson has certainly seemed to squash those preseason worries from Pittsburgh. However, I think it's still a cause for concern when your franchise goalie is struggling so much. If numbers don't change right now, Fleury is on pace for his worst season ever. Yep, ever.
Brent Johnson has been a pleasant surprise for the Pens, but he has been a more than capable back up throughout his career. His excellent play, paired with Fleury's poor play, is posing somewhat of a dilemma in Pittsburgh. Johnson hasn't carried a starting load since 01-02 with St. Louis. The Penguins currently sit in 10th in east, and barring a change of pace it's not looking too good at the Consol Energy Center.
New Jersey Devils: Martin Brodeur (3-8-1, SO 2, GAA 2.70, Save% .904), Johan Hedberg (1-2-1, SO 0, GAA 4.64, Save% .855)
When talking about the New Jersey Devils, What the Pucking Puck is the best way to describe them. On paper this team should be amazing, but it's not. Aside from the two shutouts posted by the all time shutout leader, there's nothing good to say about the Devils goaltending situation. If not for those shutouts, Brodeur's numbers would probably be about the same as Hedberg's. There is cause for alarm all over this line up and goaltending is no exception.
Brodeur hasn't been very good, and his injured elbow has caused him to miss some games. Hedberg has also played below expectations, but that could be said for the entire roster. Having watched a few Devils games this season, I have seen both goaltenders play, and they haven't been terrible. The bigger problem is the lack of support in front of them. While I understand there is a change is style underway, this team has to be better if they want to do anything this season. As it stands right now, they are a lottery pick and lack any sense of identity. Yikes!
Philadelphia Flyers: Sergei Bobrovsky (8-2-1, SO 0, GAA 2.19, Save% .926), Brian Boucher (1-2-1, SO 0, GAA 2.26, Save% .898)
During the offseason, the story was whether or not the Flyers have done enough with simply re-signing Leighton to a two year deal. At that time is was Leighton, Boucher and Johan Backlund as potential goaltenders with the big club. As it turns out, Leighton had a bad back (which is still recovering from preseason surgery) and that left room for undrafted prospect Sergei Bobrovsky. An impressive preseason, coupled with a poor showing from Backlund, gave Bobrovsky a chance to make the big club. Make it is an understatement. Initially I was taking the position that Bobrovsky needed to play in the AHL to adjust to the north american game, he has clearly proven otherwise.
With Leighton on the mend and approaching a return to the ice, there is one again a goaltending controversy in Philadelphia, but this is actually a good one. I would suspect that Laviolette will give Leighton a chance to prove he's back to the form that carried this team through the regular season and to the finals, but right now this is Bobrovsky's job to lose and I don't suspect it will happen easily. Look for Boucher to be the odd man out once Leighton is healthy, but when all is said and done, they might as well call the town Bobadelphia.
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