Welcome to the next installment of the Toronto Marlies Notebook. If you like goalie talk, then this is the notebook for you. Let’s jump right in.
Do me a favour. Visualize who you believe the five best goaltenders in the entire NHL are. Regardless of who you chose, I can guarantee you that around ¾ of them were drafted after the 1st round. Don’t believe me? Just watch.
I’m so sorry.
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Did you picture Braden Holtby? The Capitals netminder happens to be a former Vezina Trophy winner and current NHL record holder for highest postseason save percentage. Pretty good, right? Well, he was a 4th round pick.
Maybe you picked reigning Vezina winner Sergei Bobrovsky. All 31 NHL teams can’t say the same because he went undrafted. Now, a popular choice could also be Pittsburgh’s netminder Matt Murray. He’s fresh off winning his second consecutive Stanley Cup, all while remaining eligible for the Calder Trophy. That’s nuts and becomes all the more impressive with the realization that he was selected in the 3rd round. Pretty crazy, right?
Why Does this Matter?
The overwhelming response to last week’s notebook centred around one singular question: Why didn’t I tackle the Marlies’ confusing goalie situation?
It was certainly a valid request, especially in light of the Calvin Pickard acquisition from earlier that same week. However, there happened to be a distinct reason for why I refrained from diving into this topic. It’s because goalies are voodoo.