NHL Goalies Need Saving? - NHL goalies face new situation in new NHL
Tuesday, November 01, 2005

Posted by Kerrzy

At 10:42 of the first period in Denver, Andrew Brunette put home Colorado’s first goal of the game and Vancouver goaltender Dan Cloutier took the games first big hit.

The goal counted, Cloutier left the game, and Alex Auld took over, stepping into the trolley tracks.



With obstruction becoming a thing of the past in the NHL, defensemen have to adapt to a new system of play in their own end; gone are the days when the man standing in front was paying the price to do so, and forwards around the league know it.

As a result, forwards are driving to the net with a confidence and fearlessness that haven’t been seen in a long time.

Goalies around the league, especially the New Jersey Devils’ occasionally out-spoken back-stopper Martin Brodeur, have made it known to the league that they are unhappy with the way that things are going, and warn that serious injuries could happen as a result of no action by the league.

The NHLPA has submitted a list of potential goaltender additions to the NHL’s competition committee, according to Sportsnet.ca, and an announcement should be expected sometime in the near future.

The competition committee currently seats four players, Rob Blake of the Colorado Avalanche, Brendan Shanahan of the Detroit Red Wings, Jarome Iginla of the Calgary Flames and Trevor Linden of the Vancouver Canucks, along with Montreal GM Bob Gainey, Atlanta GM Don Waddell, Nashville GM David Poile, Edmonton GM Kevin Lowe and Philadelphia Flyers owner Ed Snide.

Mike Gartner, the NHLPA’s director of business operations and Colin Campbell, the NHL’s director of hockey operations, are the two non-voting members of the committee.

This addition will hopefully give the NHL’s goalies a voice that they’ll use to contribute to the building of a stronger on-ice product, but it probably won’t stop the onslaught of players storming the crease for quite some time.

Moral of the Story: It’s got to be hard on goalies being in front of all the offense in the NHL while wearing smaller pads, not being able to handle the puck as much, and now on top of everything else, they’ve got to worry about being steamrolled every time a forward drives the net. Tough luck!