Ranking the best Olympic goalie groups.
In ranking the Olympic contenders positionally, Team Canada had a stranglehold at forward and on defense. Only twice did a player, coach or executive in our very unscientific poll suggest a country at the top other than Canada for those positions.
Goaltender, as it turns out, is the great equalizer. Canada didn’t get one No. 1 vote in goal. That’s not to say Roberto Luongo or Carey Price won’t go out and win a gold medal, but there’s no doubt that goaltender is the one position in this tournament where other countries can go into a game against Canada with an edge.
And one hot goalie can change the course of an entire tournament.
“I remember back to 1998; [Dominik] Hasek pretty much stole a game, beat us in the quarterfinals where we outshot them and then beat Canada in the semis too,” said Jamie Langenbrunner, two-time Olympian and Team USA captain in 2010. “A guy gets hot, he can carry a team a long ways.”
Which team has the best candidates? Here's the list of the top five:
1. Team Finland
Not many countries could lose arguably their top candidate, like Finland did with Pekka Rinne, then roll out three more high-end No. 1 goalies. The trio of Tuukka Rask, Antti Niemi and Kari Lehtonen is an embarrassment of riches for Team Finland.
Rask, who has a .928 save percentage this season, would be my starter, especially considering he led the playoffs last season with a .940 save percentage and nearly won a Stanley Cup. Niemi was nearly as good last spring, posting a .930 postseason save percentage, and won a Cup as a starter with the Blackhawks in 2010. Lehtonen is as talented as both goalies but comes with an extremely limited postseason résumé.
The problem with having so much goalie depth is that you can play only one. It’s the one position where depth doesn’t always come with a payoff.
“It’s good to have strength in numbers,” said one Western Conference GM. “[But] at goaltender, only one is going in net. It doesn’t matter.”
This may be an advantage for Team Finland, but there’s a realization that it doesn’t automatically mean success.
“I don’t think there’s a goalie in the world that can save every shot if you’re giving up chances all night long,” said Team Finland assistant GM Jarmo Kekalainen. “We need to play a tight defensive game, and those goalies are going to do the rest.”
2. Team USA
One of the fascinating races to watch in the weeks leading up to the Olympic Games will be the performances of Ryan Miller and Jonathan Quick as each tries to earn the No. 1 job. Right now, Miller might have a slight edge, but that’s only because Quick has been hurt.
“Let’s see how Quickie comes back from injury,” Langenbrunner said. “Miller is having a heck of a year. The U.S. knows that he carried us to a silver medal and to the gold-medal game [in 201![0]](/styles/default/xenforo/NTemojis/alien.gif "Alien 0]")
. He played fantastic. He seems to be finding his game.”
It will be interesting to see how Dan Bylsma handles the goaltending early on in the tournament, as one player pointed out. In answering the poll, he picked Team USA as the best goaltending group in the world.
“I’m such a big Ryan Miller fan,” he said. “Do they give it to Quickie, who never has had that opportunity? Do they rotate in the round robin and see how they feel? Or do you just go with Millsy from the start and give him to the confidence to run with it?”
Quick has a Stanley Cup and Conn Smythe but no Olympic experience. Miller has played in two world championships and finished the 2010 Winter Olympics with a .946 save percentage. It's a tough call for Bylsma and his coaches.
3. Team Sweden
We acknowledge that Henrik Lundqvist hasn’t been particularly good this season. His .907 save percentage is the lowest of his career. But to steal an overused phrase used often by the Olympic general managers during the roster-building process, his body of work puts Sweden in the top three.
He has a career .920 save percentage in both the regular season and playoffs, showing just how consistent he is. He has won Olympic gold on the big ice before, leading Sweden to the 2006 title, and has played in five world championships.
Sweden also has two other NHL goalies on the roster in Jhonas Enroth and Jonas Gustavsson. Enroth was great for Sweden during the world championships last year, finishing 6-1 with a .956 save percentage, but this ranking is all about Lundqvist.
“He’ll be the guy they’re going to rely on,” said Nicklas Lidstrom, who won a gold medal with Lundqvist in Torino. “Even though he hasn’t played as well [in New York this season], I think you move from one team to a completely different scenario where you’re playing for your country and new teammates and everything might give him a new kick and help him out. He was fantastic the last two Olympics.”
4. Team Canada
The general feeling is that Price will be the starter for Team Canada, with Luongo the capable backup, ready in a pinch like he was in Vancouver. But listening to Blues GM Doug Armstrong, one of the Team Canada decision-makers, talk about Luongo suggests that this debate is still very much in the air.
“Luongo is an interesting study for me,” Armstrong said when we chatted this week. “When he was in Florida, he was thought of as this great goaltender who never won anything. Then he goes to Vancouver, won a gold medal, won two Presidents’ Trophies, goes to Game 7 in the finals, and he doesn’t get the accolades he got in Florida. I never really understood that.”
Armstrong continued the case for Luongo. “Look at his save percentage, look at what he’s done and how many wins he’s had,” he said. “And I’m as much impressed how he handled a difficult situation in Vancouver. That’s the kind of guy you want.”
Luongo has been strong for the Canucks this season, with a .922 save percentage after reluctantly returning after Cory Schneider was traded to New Jersey. Price has kept pace, currently at .928. Both have a lower career postseason save percentage than they do in the regular season, with Price at .905 in 30 postseason games and Luongo at .916 in 64 career postseason games. In leading Canada to gold in 2010 on home ice, Luongo went 5-0 with a .927 save percentage.
Despite a significant experience edge for Luongo, Price definitely has his supporters.
“Price,” answered one Eastern Conference scout when I asked him to pick a Team Canada starter. “If they’re both on their top game, Price’s top game is better than Luongo’s.”
5. Team Russia
The Russians have reigning Vezina winner Sergei Bobrovsky along with a goalie in Semyon Varlamov who has been one of the bigger surprises of the first half, finding his game and confidence under the guidance of Patrick Roy and Francois Allaire in Colorado. The duo should be an upgrade over Evgeni Nabokov, who posted an .853 save percentage for Team Russia in the 2010 Winter Games.
“They’re both good goalies,” Alex Ovechkin said of Varlamov and Bobrovsky. “It’s going to be tough to [determine] who is No. 1, who is going to be No. 2. We have another guy who play in the KHL. He’s great [goalie] who has won two straight KHL Cup out there.”
The third goalie Ovechkin is referring to is Alexander Eremenko, and he has been strong for Moscow Dynamo this season, with a .932 save percentage in 27 games. Despite his success in the KHL, it should be a battle between Varlamov and Bobrovsky for the No. 1 job, and it’s as close a fight as any country’s.
“You can flip a coin,” said one NHL scout. “But right now, I would lean toward Varlamov.”
Goaltender, as it turns out, is the great equalizer. Canada didn’t get one No. 1 vote in goal. That’s not to say Roberto Luongo or Carey Price won’t go out and win a gold medal, but there’s no doubt that goaltender is the one position in this tournament where other countries can go into a game against Canada with an edge.
And one hot goalie can change the course of an entire tournament.
“I remember back to 1998; [Dominik] Hasek pretty much stole a game, beat us in the quarterfinals where we outshot them and then beat Canada in the semis too,” said Jamie Langenbrunner, two-time Olympian and Team USA captain in 2010. “A guy gets hot, he can carry a team a long ways.”
Which team has the best candidates? Here's the list of the top five:
1. Team Finland
Not many countries could lose arguably their top candidate, like Finland did with Pekka Rinne, then roll out three more high-end No. 1 goalies. The trio of Tuukka Rask, Antti Niemi and Kari Lehtonen is an embarrassment of riches for Team Finland.
Rask, who has a .928 save percentage this season, would be my starter, especially considering he led the playoffs last season with a .940 save percentage and nearly won a Stanley Cup. Niemi was nearly as good last spring, posting a .930 postseason save percentage, and won a Cup as a starter with the Blackhawks in 2010. Lehtonen is as talented as both goalies but comes with an extremely limited postseason résumé.
The problem with having so much goalie depth is that you can play only one. It’s the one position where depth doesn’t always come with a payoff.
“It’s good to have strength in numbers,” said one Western Conference GM. “[But] at goaltender, only one is going in net. It doesn’t matter.”
This may be an advantage for Team Finland, but there’s a realization that it doesn’t automatically mean success.
“I don’t think there’s a goalie in the world that can save every shot if you’re giving up chances all night long,” said Team Finland assistant GM Jarmo Kekalainen. “We need to play a tight defensive game, and those goalies are going to do the rest.”
2. Team USA
One of the fascinating races to watch in the weeks leading up to the Olympic Games will be the performances of Ryan Miller and Jonathan Quick as each tries to earn the No. 1 job. Right now, Miller might have a slight edge, but that’s only because Quick has been hurt.
“Let’s see how Quickie comes back from injury,” Langenbrunner said. “Miller is having a heck of a year. The U.S. knows that he carried us to a silver medal and to the gold-medal game [in 201
. He played fantastic. He seems to be finding his game.” It will be interesting to see how Dan Bylsma handles the goaltending early on in the tournament, as one player pointed out. In answering the poll, he picked Team USA as the best goaltending group in the world.
“I’m such a big Ryan Miller fan,” he said. “Do they give it to Quickie, who never has had that opportunity? Do they rotate in the round robin and see how they feel? Or do you just go with Millsy from the start and give him to the confidence to run with it?”
Quick has a Stanley Cup and Conn Smythe but no Olympic experience. Miller has played in two world championships and finished the 2010 Winter Olympics with a .946 save percentage. It's a tough call for Bylsma and his coaches.
3. Team Sweden
We acknowledge that Henrik Lundqvist hasn’t been particularly good this season. His .907 save percentage is the lowest of his career. But to steal an overused phrase used often by the Olympic general managers during the roster-building process, his body of work puts Sweden in the top three.
He has a career .920 save percentage in both the regular season and playoffs, showing just how consistent he is. He has won Olympic gold on the big ice before, leading Sweden to the 2006 title, and has played in five world championships.
Sweden also has two other NHL goalies on the roster in Jhonas Enroth and Jonas Gustavsson. Enroth was great for Sweden during the world championships last year, finishing 6-1 with a .956 save percentage, but this ranking is all about Lundqvist.
“He’ll be the guy they’re going to rely on,” said Nicklas Lidstrom, who won a gold medal with Lundqvist in Torino. “Even though he hasn’t played as well [in New York this season], I think you move from one team to a completely different scenario where you’re playing for your country and new teammates and everything might give him a new kick and help him out. He was fantastic the last two Olympics.”
4. Team Canada
The general feeling is that Price will be the starter for Team Canada, with Luongo the capable backup, ready in a pinch like he was in Vancouver. But listening to Blues GM Doug Armstrong, one of the Team Canada decision-makers, talk about Luongo suggests that this debate is still very much in the air.
“Luongo is an interesting study for me,” Armstrong said when we chatted this week. “When he was in Florida, he was thought of as this great goaltender who never won anything. Then he goes to Vancouver, won a gold medal, won two Presidents’ Trophies, goes to Game 7 in the finals, and he doesn’t get the accolades he got in Florida. I never really understood that.”
Armstrong continued the case for Luongo. “Look at his save percentage, look at what he’s done and how many wins he’s had,” he said. “And I’m as much impressed how he handled a difficult situation in Vancouver. That’s the kind of guy you want.”
Luongo has been strong for the Canucks this season, with a .922 save percentage after reluctantly returning after Cory Schneider was traded to New Jersey. Price has kept pace, currently at .928. Both have a lower career postseason save percentage than they do in the regular season, with Price at .905 in 30 postseason games and Luongo at .916 in 64 career postseason games. In leading Canada to gold in 2010 on home ice, Luongo went 5-0 with a .927 save percentage.
Despite a significant experience edge for Luongo, Price definitely has his supporters.
“Price,” answered one Eastern Conference scout when I asked him to pick a Team Canada starter. “If they’re both on their top game, Price’s top game is better than Luongo’s.”
5. Team Russia
The Russians have reigning Vezina winner Sergei Bobrovsky along with a goalie in Semyon Varlamov who has been one of the bigger surprises of the first half, finding his game and confidence under the guidance of Patrick Roy and Francois Allaire in Colorado. The duo should be an upgrade over Evgeni Nabokov, who posted an .853 save percentage for Team Russia in the 2010 Winter Games.
“They’re both good goalies,” Alex Ovechkin said of Varlamov and Bobrovsky. “It’s going to be tough to [determine] who is No. 1, who is going to be No. 2. We have another guy who play in the KHL. He’s great [goalie] who has won two straight KHL Cup out there.”
The third goalie Ovechkin is referring to is Alexander Eremenko, and he has been strong for Moscow Dynamo this season, with a .932 save percentage in 27 games. Despite his success in the KHL, it should be a battle between Varlamov and Bobrovsky for the No. 1 job, and it’s as close a fight as any country’s.
“You can flip a coin,” said one NHL scout. “But right now, I would lean toward Varlamov.”
I'll always harbor some resentment towards Pittsburgh.
