Tuesday, December 11, 2001
Brodeur best fit for Olympics
By MIKE ULMER -- Toronto Sun
Martin Brodeur of the New Jersey Devils should be Canada's goalie of choice going into the Salt Lake City Olympics.
Not the Maple Leafs' Curtis Joseph.
Nor Phoenix Coyotes netminder Sean Burke.
Certainly not the Dallas Stars' Ed Belfour, whose merits I will dismiss with the following analysis: tick-tick-tick-tick-tick.
Let's be clear on this. I'm not saying Brodeur is a better goalie than Joseph or Burke, maybe even Belfour, for that matter.
I am saying I would consider Brodeur the No. 1 guy until proven otherwise because his skill set fits Canada's needs best.
By and large, goalies can be divided into four major categories. There is some overlap, especially at the top, but if pushed, every NHL netminder can be pigeon-holed into one of these four categories:
Lousy goalies.
Bad-team goalies.
Good-team goalies
Great goalies.
Lousy goalies: My own personal choice for lousy goalie in history is Steve Buzinski, who played nine games for the 1942-43 New York Rangers, thereby missing the big leagues only by inches. Buzinski won two games despite a 5.89 goals-against average and attained status in my personal Hall of Fame by virtue of his nickname: "Steve Buzinski, The Puck-Goes-Insky." Bad teams, good teams, it doesn't matter, bad goalies are always bad.
Bad-team goalies: Bad-team goalies are spectacular. They are the players the fans talk about on the way home, even though they lost 4-1. Bad-team goalies need shots, lots of shots, to stay involved. They thrive on bad to solid teams but are exposed on weaker clubs. Tim Cheveldae, a star in Winnipeg with the Jets, was a bust with a strong Detroit Red Wings team. Exact same route for Bob Essensa. There has been and will be a million Mike Palmateers, Jon Caseys, Don Beaupres, Dan Bouchards and Doug Favells.
Good-team goalies: Ken Dryden's six Stanley Cups make him the ultimate good-team goalie. When matched against the Soviets, the only team on the planet who could compare with Montreal, his play was less impressive.
When the Maple Leafs were wearing down teams under Pat Burns and limiting shots against, Felix Potvin was a star. When age and trades and Larry Murphy weakened the Leafs' defensive posture, Potvin began to develop ticks and moved back into the net as if someone had done the Eddie Shore trick on him. Never mind kids, but if you must know, ask your father.
Team Canada promises to have the strongest roster at the Games. This bunch will not give up lots of shots, in fact, expect the Canadians to limit their opponents to 20 or fewer most nights.
At the Olympics, Canada won't need someone to steal a game. Instead, the club requires a goalie who can cope with a trickle of action and move the puck.
Martin Brodeur is that man. There is no significant difference in Brodeur's statistics based on shots on goal. When he faces fewer than 20 shots, Brodeur is 2-2 with a 2.36 goals-against average. When the Devils surrender more, he is 9-7-1-2 with a 2.51 average. As well, Brodeur is easily the best passing goalie in the NHL.
For his part, when Burke sees more than 20 shots, he is 10-5-3. When he faces fewer than 20, he is 1-1. Not much of a sample, so here is another stat. When the Coyotes outshoot their opponents, he is 4-3 with a 2.00 goals-against average and a save percentage of .913. When his team is outshot, Burke's average is 1.65 and his save percentage is .948.
Joseph, to be fair, has never had the chance to be a great-team goalie but the fact remains he is untested in that role.
The key statistic for Joseph indicates he can't thrive when he faces fewer than 20 shots. When tested 20 or fewer times, he has won four and lost five. When called upon to stop more than 20, he has racked up an 11-3-2 record.
All this can be undone, of course, by a good period or a fortunate bounce. But the notion that Curtis Joseph is a lock for the No. 1 goalie position in Salt Lake doesn't bear examination. For now at least, Brodeur has to be given the edge.
2002 Games Men's Hockey Coverage
