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Book It For 2009
by Paul on 01/05/09 at 06:51 AM ET
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from Scott Burnside & Pierre LeBrun of ESPN,
What can we expect from the NHL in 2009? Here are 10 picks to ponder:
Scott Burnside
• 2009 will see the end of Nicklas Lidstrom’s stranglehold on the Norris Trophy for the NHL’s best defenseman….• In spite of wishful thinking by BlackBerry mogul Jim Balsillie and many Canadian media and fans that pine for days of NHL hockey in Quebec and Winnipeg, no NHL franchise will fold, declare bankruptcy or relocate in the coming year….
Pierre LeBrun
• Evgeni Nabokov of the San Jose Sharks will be the first Russian goaltender ever to win the Vezina Trophy….
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Nabokov doesn’t belong anywhere near the Vezina. He had a great season in 03/04, with a .921 save percentage, the 7th best in the NHL. Since then, he hasn’t been in the top ten once. His save percentage this year is 0.909, almost exactly league average (0.908), and probably below the league average for starting goalies. His goals against (2.44) is a little above average (2.69), but well below Brian Boucher’s, his backup, GAA of 1.88. His save percentage is worse than Boucher’s (0.928), too. Same story last year. In fact, last season, when he “probably deserved to win the Vezina”, his save percentage was matched or beaten by Ty Conklin, Chris Osgood, Mathieu Garon, Manny Legace, Jose Theodore, and Jason LaBarbera—not to mention almost everybody in the NHL with a reputation as a “good goalie”. Unless you award the Vezina based only on games played, he shouldn’t even have been a finalist.
Nabokov has had two good years (01/02 and 03/04), one very bad year (04/05), and the rest have been mostly mediocre. If he’s still an elite NHL goalie, he hasn’t shown it in a while.
Posted by Ryan from Toronto on 01/05/09 at 02:33 PM ET