Toronto Marlies Notebook: The Goaltending Edition
Calvin Pickard
Aided by Curtis McElhinney’s shaky season debut on Wednesday night, Leafs Nation is clamouring for Pickard to assume the Leafs backup role. Performing in limited duty for the Colorado Avalanche across the 2014-15 and 2015-16 seasons, Pickard posted save percentages of .932 and .922 respectively. Those are incredibly solid numbers, albeit from a small sample size.
Remember what I said about being patient in your judgment? It definitely applies here. Pickard simply cannot be judged on his performance from 2016-17. No Avalanche player can.
Suiting up behind a D corps like Colorado’s from last year should be grounds to sue the NHL for emotional distress. A plague of injuries forced Pickard into starting 50 games, which was far and away from his career high. When the dust settled, he wound up with a measly .904 save percentage. Not great, right?
Here’s the thing, though. NO ONE would have posted respectable numbers on that team. After that dumpster fire, it’s a miracle Joe Sakic is still legally allowed to even watch a hockey game on TV, let alone run a team. This brings us to Saturday.
Pickard made his debut against the Providence Bruins, stopping 33 of 35 shots on route to his 1st Marlies win. I know it’s easy to overhype a new Leafs acquisition, but, dang. He looked good.
Pickard more than impressed, exhibiting poise and composure befitting of an NHL goaltender. To jump into game action directly after being waived is no easy task. And yet, he answered the bell.
If I were you, and I’m not, I would begin to think of Pickard as the Leafs backup. We’ve seen what McElhinney can do, making it really only a matter of time before Pickard takes over. The Marlies crease is currently far too crowded, meaning something’s got to give. Pickard happens to be the most NHL-ready goalie on the roster. Let’s see what he can do.