Canadiens Blog: The Myth of the backup goalie

T.C. Denault
2008-05-15 16:56:36

One of my favourite off-season pastimes is taking a closer look at all the blogs and message boards that deal with all things Montreal Canadien. At this point in the spring you would think that the traffic would start to slow down on the various sites, as the memories of the Habs previous season recede into memory.

Amazingly, you would be wrong. Right now this loose conglomerate of like minded people that is sometimes referred to as Habs Nation is abuzz with talk of potential trades and free-agent signings.

In looking over all of these rants I'm struck by the amount of people who seem to feel that the Canadiens should be shopping for an experienced goaltender to back up Carey Price. In a free agent market thin with backup goaltenders, the name Olaf Kolzig is the one that is mentioned the most.

Many of these posters believe that in order for Price to take his play to the next level, he needs a veteran presence around him that will help act as a mentor for him.

Many point out that Kolzig, a free agent, has a past with Price as part-owner of the Tri-City Americans of the WJHL, Price's junior team. And while at one point, Kolzig was probably one of the league's better goalies, one has to question whether he still has the skills required.

After all, Kolzig, if signed will probably play in about twenty five games. If Price were to get hurt, he would become the main guy. For me this raises two questions, is Kolzig capable of handling this type of load? And more importantly, is Kolzig an improvement over Jaroslav Halak, the current Canadiens backup?

Olaf Kolzig is currently 38 years old, and last year saw himself usurped as the Washington Capitals starting goaltender by ironically former Canadien, Cristobal Huet. In taking a closer look at Kolzig's statistics a disturbing trend emerges. Two years ago, Kolzig gave up a goal for every 11.14 shots he faced. Last year, his percentage jumped to a goal in every 9.3 shots he faced. Could this be a start of a disturbing trend or merely a blip? Sadly, at the advanced age of 38, all indications point to the former.

So would Kolzig be an improvement in goal over Halak? At this stage of his career, I don't think so. In looking at Halak's statistics the last two years with both the Hamilton Bulldogs and the Canadiens Halak surrendered a goal for every 13 shots he faced. Simply put, Halak when facing 100 shots gives up an average of 7.69 goals, on the other hand Kolzig's average is 10.75 goals.

Simply put, Halak at this stage of his career is 16 years younger than Kolzig, and probably the better goalie.

The other argument, by those advocating the signing of Kolzig is the tried and true theory that a young goaltender requires an experienced backup, to act as a mentor. Many argue that the presence of Kolzig will help improve Price's play.

Sometimes, long held hockey theories are made of myth as opposed to fact. The Canadiens, blessed with the greatest of all goaltending legacies, have either had a dominant number one goalie, or a battle between two goalies for the number one spot. Never, have they employed for a reasonable amount of time, the young goalie, veteran backup duo.

This past spring saw Price, in every article constantly compared to Ken Dryden and Patrick Roy, so the two of them are as good a place to start as any. 

In Dryden's years with the Canadiens, his backups in order were Rogie Vachon, Wayne Thomas, Michel Plasse, and Michel "Bunny" Larocque. None of these four were seen as his mentor, they were there to foster competition and asked to perform when called upon. Dryden was for his entire career, the clear cut number one.

In the case of Roy, his first three backups, Steve Penney, Doug Soetart, and Brian Hayward, were once again meant to be competition (especially Hayward). None of the three were thought of as mentors to Roy in any way. In looking at other recent Habs goalies, one would be hard pressed to find a situation where the two goalies were student and mentor. The only two partnerships that saw a young starting goalie teamed with an experienced backup (Vachon/Gump Worsley and Jose Theodore/Jeff Hackett) were once again more about competition than anything else.

Looking over the successful young goalies of recent vintage, one would also be hard pressed to name a situation where it was mentor/student as opposed to a competitive situation or a case of clear cut number one.

Martin Brodeur's veteran mentor was? Belfour's? Giguere's? Hasek's? Turco's?

If the truth be told, the veteran presence, the mentor for many young goalies today is not the backup, but instead is the goalie coach. Back in the old days, goaltenders had to lean on each other more often. That role is assumed now by the goalie coach. Earlier, when I mentioned that none of Patrick Roy's backups were mentors, I didn't include the man that Roy has credited with his unprecedented success;

Francois Allaire, the Canadiens goalie coach during Roy's time with the Canadiens.

T.C. Denault is a member of the Society of International Hockey Research and a featured columnist for HabsWorld.net.