News
RED ALERT: Pacific Division Goalies Are BAD
Dec
There are seven goalies in the pacific division with a cap hit of at least $5M.
All of them have a sub .900 Sv%.
John Gibson (.896)
Jacob Markstrom (.893)
Thatcher Demko (.883)
Jonathan Quick (.882)
Philip Grubauer (.882)
Jack Campbell (.875)
Cal Petersen (.868)— Russell Morgan (@NHLRussell) December 19, 2022
Let’s try to break this down.
Obviously, the Pacific Division is really wonky this year, and it’s not just the goalie’s faults.
The Quack Attack Lacks Jack
Anaheim in particular has struggled immensely everywhere on the ice. Gibson hasn’t had much goal support, nor defensive support. However, I’m convinced that something isn’t right with Gibby.
He plays what I like to call a “basic structure game.” I’m sure there’s a legit term for it, but hey. He squares up to the shooter, and makes his save to the shooter square to the puck.
This has been causing him to lose sight of the backdoor, and his reaction saves seem a step behind so when he has to react to a save that’s not straight on – his chances of saving that puck diminishes.
Oil Spill
Jack Campbell was supposed to be the savior of Edmonton after his resurgence in Toronto. Unfortunately Jack Campbell is Jack Campell, a 1B/2A goalie that got some lucky spells to look like a 1A goalie. Edmonton just signed Stuart Skinner to 3 more years, so we know where their head is at.
Smoldering Ash
Jacob Markstrom wasn’t the reason for the Canuck’s struggles when he was in Vancouver. He was still able to showcase his abilities and make a name for himself. He even made it to the 2020 NHL All-Star Game. So when Calgary picked him up, it was a no brainer that Calgary would be more of a threat.
Last year he ended with a .922 SV%. Not sure what’s happening to him now, but some needs to light a fire under him.
Get it?
All Chopped Up
I couldn’t think of a good Canucks pun or play on words. Vancouver is just a total and complete mess, and Demko can’t turn the ship around by himself. He’s arguable a really good goalie, the team in front of him is just poo-doo. At least now they’re winning some games, so hopefully he can crack the .900 Club and get off this list.
All Kraked Up
Personally, I feel Grubauer is along the lines of Campbell. Solid back-up that has some great spells which allowed him to take over a team. He moves on, kind of struggles but gets that spell again.
Seattle’s inaugural year was a tire fire, but they’re fairing much better. Martin Jones’ resurgence probably hasn’t helped much, so maybe Grubauer is experiencing some stress from the competition?
The Kings! The Kings?
What’s weird is that the Kings are #2 in the Pacific, they’re doing pretty well as a team this year. Their goaltending, struggling.
Quick re-discovered the brilliance from his Stanley Cup years during the last season to help the Kings slide into the playoffs. This year, he’s not as super hot, but he’s still letting in the Quick style goals.
The big surprise comes from the man poised to take over the Kings’ crease: Cal Petersen. Unfortunately, Petersen experiences an utter collapse in his game which resulted in a demoted to Ontario. Phoenix Copely has since taken over as the most reliable option in net for the Kings.
No Sharks in These Waters
What’s surprising is that the Sharks aren’t listed here – oh wait, they’re not paying tons of money to their goalies. Reimer has been meh at best, and Kappo Kahkonen has seemingly disappeared. It’s going to be choppy waters for the Sharks for the remainder of the season, and if they’re not going into a rebuild any time soon, they need an upgrade in net if they have any sort of playoff hopes.
