HOH Top 60 Goaltenders of All Time (2024 Edition) - Round 2, Vote 11
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Professor What
Registered User
Yeah... I'm not a fan of Vernon making the list personally.
Michael Farkas
Celebrate 68
Michael Farkas
Celebrate 68
I know folks won't be interested for various reasons, but given that we have some absolute zilches available to us this round, I'd be remiss if I didn't make a case for what's probably the most technically skilled goalie that's left, and maybe the most technically skilled goalie we've had in at least a round - especially if you factor "mental" into it, it might be several rounds.
Juuse Saros is basically everything you want in a goalie....except he's 5'10", 170 pounds and plays on a team that just doesn't have a chance...the horses (and coaches) to play defense are gone, they're trying to mercenary their way to offense and that's not going well...it went from a choice spot for goalies, but now has attritioned down to one of the tougher teams in the union...
But make no mistake, Saros is an elite goalie. I am thrilled that he's even available. I'm not sure how, but I love it. I had him in the early 30's on my list (right behind two guys who don't appear poised to be available). But more or less in the same group with other technicians like Resch, Miller, and Holtby.
I'm traveling, so I'll try to put something together on the fly...
First...he's an elite skater with elite edges. In this short sequence versus Carolina, there's just so much about him that you can glean. But maybe the biggest takeaway and most interesting aspect is: Saros isn't subject to momentum like most goalies are. As Panger would say, he can stop on a dime and give five cents' change.
You watch that 2 on 1 sequence against Carolina there and he makes the big push to deal with a cross net line pass. That's gonna be it for a lot of goalies right there. So, that puck gets one-touched back across, there's a huge chunk of goalies that won't even bother fighting for that. They'll stand up and maybe push in that direction just in case the guy flubs the shot or some other miracle, but they're toast.
Not Saros. Not only doesn't he quit, but he thinks he's got a legit shot at it. And that one desperation push isn't enough, he anchors himself to the post, and brings his body over to square up to the inevitable rebound in that situation. He doesn't fall on his tummy and just go, "well, I made the impossible save...hopefully someone takes care of the rest..." he makes it a point to not only make the impossible save, but then also clean up the loose ends. He's cooking a Michelin Star meal and bussing the table.
It's not just the edges, but it's also the crease depth management and the speed matching on high-danger looks that's really impressive and under control (sorry if someone is talking during these clips, I'm on mute, you probably should be too haha).
Look at him here on very unsmart Anthony Duclair. Duclair just doesn't seem to understand who he's working against here. Saros can stay upright better than any goalie in the NHL right now, who makes more standing saves than him? Nobody. So you can't just wait him out to drop and then throw it over his shoulder...if that was the case, at his size, he wouldn't be in the NHL. He's already thought of that and he's way ahead of you. So, he's going to hang in, make you declare, and then his lightning quick skating and reflexes will give him every opportunity to make a play.
Duclair tries to sell backhand here on the breakaway. He even keeps his eyes up for a bit, waiting for Saros to give him something. But Saros gives no ground, and as Duclair gets deeper, Saros seals the forehand post, keeps his stick in the five-hole zone (not that I think Duclair is a frequent five-holer), and just ushers Duclair into the corner basically.
Even when things aren't on the floor, he's there with his hands...
Makes a blocker save from a standing position on a break with a backdoor option. Not a lot of goalies are capable of these things.
One thing that I really look for in players when scouting is a concept that I call "skill chaining". Players can be skilled, players can be great at this, players can process like that...but you need to be able to combine skills in quick, successive sequences to really take it to a next level. It's part of having a scalable, dynamic skill package. It's the supreme version of being able to walk and chew gum at the same time.
There's probably some sort of analog that can be made here about the Giacomin newspaper quote stuff earlier in this thread actually and haven't been able to put my finger on it exactly...it's like, "yes, Giacomin is listed as a third d-man and that happens with Brodeur too" but that's not equal. It's not the right way to look at a player in my opinion because it compartmentalizes him in a way that doesn't jive with the game. Because it's not transactional like that. A player like Giacomin has such a limited skill "pool" to play from on any given sequence, so he can do [action] in a spot here and there, and that warrants a reaction, but he can't string positive actions together really.
Like, Giacomin CAN come out and play the puck up the wall to Park. Later, he CAN make an acrobatic save from being out of position. Later, he CAN do X. But in the meantime, he's had a ton of negative things pile on him too. Bad rebounds, bad reads, bad positioning, etc.
With Brodeur, he comes out and makes a play in the same sequence that he made a great save because of a great read. It's not just selling his soul on every singular sequence and then hoping to sell his soul again, so to speak.
It's sort of like saying, I don't know, Zemgus Girgensons can protect the puck extremely well. Sidney Crosby can protect extremely well. So, there's a cancel of sorts. But Girgensons has to give all of his physical and technical attributes to maintaining puck protection in the NHL. He has to donate all of his "experience points" (or whatever) to make that happen. For Crosby, it's built-in, it's automatic, and he can play off of that. He can catch the pass in his feet, immediately go into puck protection mode, still work his way into the interior, and then make an insane pass on his backhand to setup a scoring chance. The puck protection doesn't really cost him much of his "pool", so he's able to do more from that spot.
Girgensons CAN get the puck on the boards.......protect it. Maybe he can chip it behind the net after that.
So, even though the words or the action are the same...they don't really play the same. So the concept of skill chaining really matters, the process in which plays are created is really crucial.
Anyway...Saros is a wonderful skill chainer. He's so fluid in combination plays because he can combine his skill so quickly and concisely that he's literally giving goalie scouts hope that guys 4 to 6 inches shorter than the macro trend can actually play (see: Dustin Wolf in the Calder conversation).
You look here. Long shot, some traffic (not too bad). We have a tip in the low slot. Reaction save, heel kick to try to mute the rebound as best he can. Process. Skate, shuffle. Stick skills to shuffleboard this thing out of danger. Snaps to his feet to be ready for the next sequence.
It's not much on its surface, but he chains all of these sequences together so much during a game because he's fighting uphill in a way that 99% of the league doesn't have to. And he does it with absurdly good technicals, pristine hockey sense, and some of the most rapid skill chaining sequences you're going to find.
He has, what, four seasons as a starter. None with "peak" Nashville. And he's been top 5 in the Vezina in all of them? That really kind of is Shestyorkin, who is already there with 1+ less season.
I don't think it's the least bit out of line to have Saros #1 on your ballot this round...in fact, I'd down right support it.
Even if you don't want to do that, just do yourself a favor after this project and watch a Predators game. Goalies aren't usually worth the price of admission or the time investment on their own, but you can learn a lot about the game watching Saros - I'd recommend it to anyone.
Juuse Saros is basically everything you want in a goalie....except he's 5'10", 170 pounds and plays on a team that just doesn't have a chance...the horses (and coaches) to play defense are gone, they're trying to mercenary their way to offense and that's not going well...it went from a choice spot for goalies, but now has attritioned down to one of the tougher teams in the union...
But make no mistake, Saros is an elite goalie. I am thrilled that he's even available. I'm not sure how, but I love it. I had him in the early 30's on my list (right behind two guys who don't appear poised to be available). But more or less in the same group with other technicians like Resch, Miller, and Holtby.
I'm traveling, so I'll try to put something together on the fly...
First...he's an elite skater with elite edges. In this short sequence versus Carolina, there's just so much about him that you can glean. But maybe the biggest takeaway and most interesting aspect is: Saros isn't subject to momentum like most goalies are. As Panger would say, he can stop on a dime and give five cents' change.
You watch that 2 on 1 sequence against Carolina there and he makes the big push to deal with a cross net line pass. That's gonna be it for a lot of goalies right there. So, that puck gets one-touched back across, there's a huge chunk of goalies that won't even bother fighting for that. They'll stand up and maybe push in that direction just in case the guy flubs the shot or some other miracle, but they're toast.
Not Saros. Not only doesn't he quit, but he thinks he's got a legit shot at it. And that one desperation push isn't enough, he anchors himself to the post, and brings his body over to square up to the inevitable rebound in that situation. He doesn't fall on his tummy and just go, "well, I made the impossible save...hopefully someone takes care of the rest..." he makes it a point to not only make the impossible save, but then also clean up the loose ends. He's cooking a Michelin Star meal and bussing the table.
It's not just the edges, but it's also the crease depth management and the speed matching on high-danger looks that's really impressive and under control (sorry if someone is talking during these clips, I'm on mute, you probably should be too haha).
Look at him here on very unsmart Anthony Duclair. Duclair just doesn't seem to understand who he's working against here. Saros can stay upright better than any goalie in the NHL right now, who makes more standing saves than him? Nobody. So you can't just wait him out to drop and then throw it over his shoulder...if that was the case, at his size, he wouldn't be in the NHL. He's already thought of that and he's way ahead of you. So, he's going to hang in, make you declare, and then his lightning quick skating and reflexes will give him every opportunity to make a play.
Duclair tries to sell backhand here on the breakaway. He even keeps his eyes up for a bit, waiting for Saros to give him something. But Saros gives no ground, and as Duclair gets deeper, Saros seals the forehand post, keeps his stick in the five-hole zone (not that I think Duclair is a frequent five-holer), and just ushers Duclair into the corner basically.
Even when things aren't on the floor, he's there with his hands...
Makes a blocker save from a standing position on a break with a backdoor option. Not a lot of goalies are capable of these things.
One thing that I really look for in players when scouting is a concept that I call "skill chaining". Players can be skilled, players can be great at this, players can process like that...but you need to be able to combine skills in quick, successive sequences to really take it to a next level. It's part of having a scalable, dynamic skill package. It's the supreme version of being able to walk and chew gum at the same time.
There's probably some sort of analog that can be made here about the Giacomin newspaper quote stuff earlier in this thread actually and haven't been able to put my finger on it exactly...it's like, "yes, Giacomin is listed as a third d-man and that happens with Brodeur too" but that's not equal. It's not the right way to look at a player in my opinion because it compartmentalizes him in a way that doesn't jive with the game. Because it's not transactional like that. A player like Giacomin has such a limited skill "pool" to play from on any given sequence, so he can do [action] in a spot here and there, and that warrants a reaction, but he can't string positive actions together really.
Like, Giacomin CAN come out and play the puck up the wall to Park. Later, he CAN make an acrobatic save from being out of position. Later, he CAN do X. But in the meantime, he's had a ton of negative things pile on him too. Bad rebounds, bad reads, bad positioning, etc.
With Brodeur, he comes out and makes a play in the same sequence that he made a great save because of a great read. It's not just selling his soul on every singular sequence and then hoping to sell his soul again, so to speak.
It's sort of like saying, I don't know, Zemgus Girgensons can protect the puck extremely well. Sidney Crosby can protect extremely well. So, there's a cancel of sorts. But Girgensons has to give all of his physical and technical attributes to maintaining puck protection in the NHL. He has to donate all of his "experience points" (or whatever) to make that happen. For Crosby, it's built-in, it's automatic, and he can play off of that. He can catch the pass in his feet, immediately go into puck protection mode, still work his way into the interior, and then make an insane pass on his backhand to setup a scoring chance. The puck protection doesn't really cost him much of his "pool", so he's able to do more from that spot.
Girgensons CAN get the puck on the boards.......protect it. Maybe he can chip it behind the net after that.
So, even though the words or the action are the same...they don't really play the same. So the concept of skill chaining really matters, the process in which plays are created is really crucial.
Anyway...Saros is a wonderful skill chainer. He's so fluid in combination plays because he can combine his skill so quickly and concisely that he's literally giving goalie scouts hope that guys 4 to 6 inches shorter than the macro trend can actually play (see: Dustin Wolf in the Calder conversation).
You look here. Long shot, some traffic (not too bad). We have a tip in the low slot. Reaction save, heel kick to try to mute the rebound as best he can. Process. Skate, shuffle. Stick skills to shuffleboard this thing out of danger. Snaps to his feet to be ready for the next sequence.
It's not much on its surface, but he chains all of these sequences together so much during a game because he's fighting uphill in a way that 99% of the league doesn't have to. And he does it with absurdly good technicals, pristine hockey sense, and some of the most rapid skill chaining sequences you're going to find.
He has, what, four seasons as a starter. None with "peak" Nashville. And he's been top 5 in the Vezina in all of them? That really kind of is Shestyorkin, who is already there with 1+ less season.
I don't think it's the least bit out of line to have Saros #1 on your ballot this round...in fact, I'd down right support it.
Even if you don't want to do that, just do yourself a favor after this project and watch a Predators game. Goalies aren't usually worth the price of admission or the time investment on their own, but you can learn a lot about the game watching Saros - I'd recommend it to anyone.
VanIslander
20 years of All-Time Drafts on HfBoards
"Miller Time"
We inducted Quick way back 35th, ... now are in the '50s... (the gap is getting untenable).
- The 2001 Hobey Baker as best NCAA player (not just best goalie);
- The 2010 Olympic MVP (not just Best Goalie);
- Awarded best goalie at both the AHL & NHL level (hence every situ of his career);
- FUN FACT: Has the same number of NHL wins at 391 as fellow American Jonathan Quick (trailing only the Beezer), but Miller has a better save percentage.
We inducted Quick way back 35th, ... now are in the '50s... (the gap is getting untenable).
Last edited:
Felidae
Registered User
- Sep 30, 2016
- 12,628
- 16,047
Just to piggyback off of Vanislanders endorsement of Miller. Of the goalies available in the 21st century, I'm kinda leaning towards Miller being the best of the bunch in an all time sense , though I could be convinced otherwise.
Here's the stats for the other goalies.
Here is Miller
Finishes
GP: 3, 7, 7, 8, 9
Saves: 1, 3, 3, 3, 6, 10
Sv%: 2, 5, 8, 10
GSAA: 1, 4, 10
All time
18th in GP
12th in saves
30th in sv%
GSAA: 41st
So we see that out of all the goalies here. He has the most games played and the hardest workload in terms of shot count other than Saros. Not too far behind in GP per season, with only Saros and Nabokov ahead.
Then there's also Miller rarely playing for top defensive teams throughout his career
Here's his team GA in order from his first to last season (2002 - 2020)..
Buffalo
13th
22nd
10th
13th
22nd
14th
4th
16th
18th
22nd
25th and 3rd (played for 2 teams)
Van
19th
23rd
24th
Anaheim
3rd
17th
28th
23rd
That's pretty bad.. and it makes his stats more impressive. He's had only 5 seasons below a .910 sv%. 4 of those were his first 2 seasons were he played a combined 18 games, and his last 2 seasons as a 39-40 year old playing a combined 39 games..
Thats very good consistency over an 18 year career with almost 800 games played, and I don't think Thomas, Holtby or even Saros have done enough to be ranked higher than him in an all time sense, even if they peaked higher.
It's the same rationale for voting MAF ahead of them. To a lesser degree of course, MAF has played 200+ more games than Miller.
But Miller has played 283 more games than Holtby, 370 more than Thomas, and 410 more than Saros (though I do think Saros will vault ahead most of these guys by the time his career ends)
As for Nabokov who is his closest comparable in most statistical categories, here is his team GA from his first to last season. (1999 to 2014)
SJS
13th
3rd
9th
26th
4th
11th
5th
3rd
3rd
8th
NYI
27th
21st
28th
TBL
12th
Most of the worst years for his teams GA were outside his prime. But even so, 5 seasons of Nabokov's team ranked top 5 in GA in the middle of his prime vs 2 for Miller, 1 of which in his late 30s.. that's a noticeable gap in defensive quality, and its reflected in Miller consistently facing more shots throughout his career.
So i think if you value consistency over peak play (and Miller's peak still matches up to some of these players), I'd put him ahead of the rest of the 21st century goalies here.
Here's the stats for the other goalies.
Here is Miller
Finishes
GP: 3, 7, 7, 8, 9
Saves: 1, 3, 3, 3, 6, 10
Sv%: 2, 5, 8, 10
GSAA: 1, 4, 10
All time
18th in GP
12th in saves
30th in sv%
GSAA: 41st
So we see that out of all the goalies here. He has the most games played and the hardest workload in terms of shot count other than Saros. Not too far behind in GP per season, with only Saros and Nabokov ahead.
Then there's also Miller rarely playing for top defensive teams throughout his career
Here's his team GA in order from his first to last season (2002 - 2020)..
Buffalo
13th
22nd
10th
13th
22nd
14th
4th
16th
18th
22nd
25th and 3rd (played for 2 teams)
Van
19th
23rd
24th
Anaheim
3rd
17th
28th
23rd
That's pretty bad.. and it makes his stats more impressive. He's had only 5 seasons below a .910 sv%. 4 of those were his first 2 seasons were he played a combined 18 games, and his last 2 seasons as a 39-40 year old playing a combined 39 games..
Thats very good consistency over an 18 year career with almost 800 games played, and I don't think Thomas, Holtby or even Saros have done enough to be ranked higher than him in an all time sense, even if they peaked higher.
It's the same rationale for voting MAF ahead of them. To a lesser degree of course, MAF has played 200+ more games than Miller.
But Miller has played 283 more games than Holtby, 370 more than Thomas, and 410 more than Saros (though I do think Saros will vault ahead most of these guys by the time his career ends)
As for Nabokov who is his closest comparable in most statistical categories, here is his team GA from his first to last season. (1999 to 2014)
SJS
13th
3rd
9th
26th
4th
11th
5th
3rd
3rd
8th
NYI
27th
21st
28th
TBL
12th
Most of the worst years for his teams GA were outside his prime. But even so, 5 seasons of Nabokov's team ranked top 5 in GA in the middle of his prime vs 2 for Miller, 1 of which in his late 30s.. that's a noticeable gap in defensive quality, and its reflected in Miller consistently facing more shots throughout his career.
So i think if you value consistency over peak play (and Miller's peak still matches up to some of these players), I'd put him ahead of the rest of the 21st century goalies here.
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VanIslander
20 years of All-Time Drafts on HfBoards
Yeah.
Ryan Miller has had to be the best teammate on the ice in too many games.
He was fun to watch.
Ryan Miller has had to be the best teammate on the ice in too many games.
He was fun to watch.
Here’s an expanded post I made about Vladimír Dzurilla in the preliminary.
How to rank him? Dzurilla’s prime covers the 1965-1972 period (age 23-30). He’d be the most seeked out goaltender from North American scouts during this time.
Ján Starší (CSSR national team coach over the 1970s, 1980s):
“He was a goalie who was not falling which Canadian coaches wanted to see. He perfectly covered the angles which means his spacial awareness and anticipation was on high level and that’s why he easily moved, didn’t fall and he played, we could say, the Canadian style. For these reasons we might call him the greatest European goaltender in his time.”
Jozef Golonka (CSSR national team player and captain over the 1960s):
“Vlado could have stayed in Canada thousands of times. He had offers that no other could have dreamed of.”
A fan question in the TIP magazine 1971 and Dzurilla’s response:
“If you were to receive an offer to play for professional team of Montreal or Chicago, which one would you choose?”
“I have been given an offer for a few years now. But not from Montreal nor from Chicago, but from Toronto. Truthfully though, it’s pointless to think about it.”
Vladimír Dzurilla represented a direct opposite of Jiří Holeček in many aspects; stylistically and temperamentally. Having Dzurilla and Holeček as options contributed to a great reputation of Czechoslovak goalies at the time, and to a confidence the Czechoslovak hockey public had in their netminders.
While Holeček took his time to develop, Dzurilla’s talent was imminent. He first played the Czechoslovak league game in 1959-60 as a 17 y/o. He got into the National team next season in Nov. 1960 just after 9 league games he had played so far. Translated into the context of our time, teenage Dzurilla would have been highly touted 1st or 2nd round draft pick, while Holeček would have gone undrafted.
Arne Strömberg, Swedish national team coach after Dzurilla’s 1st international game (CSSR losing to Sweden 1:3):
“Within the losing team I liked the goalie the most.”
Dzurilla would have started his international career at the 1962 WHC held in Colorado Springs, USA but for various reasons Eastern Bloc countries (USSR, Czechoslovakia, East Germany, Romania) declined their participation. Thus Dzurilla’s first championship experience came a year later.
Dzurilla switched starts with other goalies in 1963 and 1964 but he became #1 at the ’65 WHC. He was both statistically and voting-wise the best goalie of the championship.
World Championship 1965
1. Leif Holmqvist (SWE): 2 games / 0 goals allowed / 41 saves / 1.000
2. Vladimír Dzurilla (CSSR): 6 games / 6 goals allowed / 107 saves / 0.9469
3. Viktor Zinger (USSR): 2 games / 3 goals allowed / 42 saves / 0.9333
4. Ken Broderick (CAN): 5 games / 11 goals allowed / 127 saves / 0.9203
5. Peter Kolbe (E. GER): 5 games / 17 goals allowed / 181 saves / 0.9141
6. Viktor Konovalenko (USSR): 5 games / 10 goals allowed / 95 saves / 0.9048
7. Juhani Lahtinen (FIN): 6 games / 23 goals allowed / 193 saves / 0.8935
8. Urpo Ylönen (FIN): 1 game / 4 goals allowed / 27 saves / 0.8710
9. Kjell Svensson (SWE): 6 games / 17 goals allowed / 111 saves / 0.8672
10. Vladimír Nadrchal (CSSR): 2 games / 4 goals allowed / 26 saves / 0.8667
11. Tom Haugh (USA): 7 games / 44 goals allowed / 273 saves / 0.8612
12. Don Collins (CAN): 2 games / 10 goals allowed / 56 saves / 0.8485
13. Klaus Hirche (E. GER): 2 games / 16 goals allowed / 89 saves / 0.8476
14. Kåre Østensen (NOR): 6 games / 42 goals allowed / 211 saves / 0.8340
15. Thore Nilsen (NOR): 1 game / 14 goals allowed / 43 saves / 0.7544
IIHF Directoriate´s Best Goaltender: Vladimír Dzurilla
All-Star Team Voting: 1. Vladimír Dzurilla (36 votes), 2. Tom Haugh (6 votes), 3. Peter Kolbe (5 votes), 4. Ken Broderick (4 votes), 5. Juhani Lahtinen, Kjell Svensson (1 vote)
Dzurilla kept the good play throughout 1966 season but failed in the very last game, the deciding gold-medal game of CSSR vs. Soviets. He was pulled after 5 minutes when he conceded 3 goals. Czechoslovaks were actually closer to gold before the game actually since Soviets had only tied with Sweden. CSSR only needed a tie to come up first. If not for the last game, the competition for the best goalie awards might have been a close call between Dzurilla and Martin. Due to last game though, voters went for default choice and selected Martin.
Post 1966 WHC commentaries noted that Dzurilla relies on his good reflexes and cutting down shooter’s angle too much that it can undo all the good he brings. Faster leg mobility and better skating needs an improvement in order to stop his weakness – on-ice goals or goals slightly above the ice that should be blocked by legs. However, writers did not that “quick puck distribution by a goalie stick to start a counterattack is perfectly controlled and used only by Dzurilla and there is no sight of applying this useful element by any other goalie.”
Dzurilla was a unicorn in the ranks of European goalies when it came to stickhandling. Euro goalies were typically forced to stay deep in the crease and even actively discouraged to handle the puck by their coaches. Dzurilla was noted to record an assist in a league game for example. This was sometimes mentioned as an usual feat.
Stickhandling was a part of his aggressive, and sometimes overly aggresssive style, challenging and pressuring the opposing players as much as he can. Dzurilla was loud and expressive verbally, shouting at forwards to throw them off. The other side of the coin was that he himself could have been caught out of position, to skate against forward too far out or to let himself be provoked and out of focus.
All of this dynamics is still present with Dzurilla at his veteran stage of career. Canada Cup games as well as 1977 WHC games. Take a look at what nearly 35 y/o goalie allows himself to do in a gold-medal deciding game, in the 3rd period after Czechoslovakia started off 4:0, and Soviets almost equaling the score. The game did end 4:3 in favor of CSSR and they won the gold medal. From today’s perspective I think Dzurilla looks good there, certainly entertaining, effectively creating a chance for his forward; though from a stereotypical European coach of the era this was unnecessarily risky play. Time of the video should be around 1:28:30.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5rHZF9J7jbU#t=88m20s
Meanwhile Jiří Holeček’s response after end of ‘78 Championship to the question: “What is your opinion on Canadian goaltenders?”
JH: “The best of them are equal to the European goalies. Moreover, they’re great in a good work with the hockey stick, in a quick pass release. I’ve never learnt that because since youth, coaches rather forced me to play safe.”
Vladimír missed most of 1967 season due to knee injury and subsequent meniscus surgery. Dzurilla did return few weeks before the championship, but seen as unplayed, coaches took young Holeček and Nadrchal for the tournament. Meanwhile Canadian team had an exhibition game against Slovan Bratislava (1:1) couple days before the tournament. Dzurilla was the star of that game, calling into question the decision to leave him off.
Dissapointing 4th place finish of the team at 1967 WHC made it easy for Dzurilla to regain his status, even in spite of suffering another knee injury at the first league game of the 1968 season. Fortunately it didn’t require another surgery, he got back in time for the Olympics. He became a clear best Czechoslovak goalie again. Dzurilla didn’t shine statistically (0.873 in 7 games) but got a lot of praise including 5:4 win over Soviets. Dzurilla also had a comfortable lead in league SV%, finishing with 0.912 (91,2% on the picture below) when just one other starter had an SV% above 0.900.
His play continued to improve as he became one of the top European players through 1969. Won both politically charged games against the USSR. Dzurilla ended the 1st encounter with a shutout which I believe hadn’t happened before. Soviets scored (even if they lost) in every game against a European opponent in a major tournament between 1954-1968.
The games at this championship has made Dzurilla a celebrity – to the fans of Czech and Slovak hockey. Not really the Canada Cup games, although his performance there has been also frequently reminded.
Despite my description, I don't want to single out Dzurilla as the finest netminder. 1969 WHC was a close call between Dzurilla and Holmqvist.
World Championship 1969
1. Miroslav Lacký (CSSR): 3 games / 2 goals allowed / 40 saves / 0.9524
2. Ken Dryden (CAN): 2 games / 3 goals allowed / 49 saves / 0.9423
3. Gunnar Bäckman (SWE): 2 games / 2 goals allowed / 29 saves / 0.9355
4. Vladimír Dzurilla (CSSR): 9 games / 18 goals allowed / 193 saves / 0.9147
5. Leif Holmqvist (SWE): 8 games / 17 goals allowed / 180 saves / 0.9137
6. Viktor Zinger (USSR): 10 games / 21 goals allowed / 200 saves / 0.9050
7. Wayne Stephenson (CAN): 8 games / 25 goals allowed / 228 saves / 0.9012
8. Urpo Ylönen (FIN): 10 games / 49 goals allowed / 301 saves / 0.8600
9. Mike Curran (USA): 10 games / 74 goals allowed / 442 saves / 0.8566
10. Lasse Kiili (FIN): 1 game / 3 goals allowed / 15 saves / 0.8333
11. Steve Rexe (CAN): 1 (?) game / 2 goals allowed / 8 saves / 0.8000
12. Viktor Puchkov (USSR): 1 (?) game / 2 goals allowed / 7 saves / 0.7778
IIHF Directoriate´s Best Goaltender: Leif Holmqvist
All-Star Team Voting: 1. Vladimír Dzurilla (59 votes out of 150 ballots), 2. Leif Holmqvist (56 votes), 3. Mike Curran (28 votes)
Dzurilla may have hit his peak during 1970. He played his best domestically, crushed his goalie competitors and was one of the main challengers to Jan Suchý placement in the Golden Stick voting. Dzurilla’s SV% lead (0.935) over the others was quite something. See below the 1st column (games played), 2nd column (goals allowed), 3rd column (saves), and the last 4th column (SV%):
However, he faltered at the ’70 WHC. Dzurilla's performance was a disappointment there as if he ran out of energy. His backup was injured so Dzurilla had to play all 10 anyway. So 1970 is a season difficult to evaluate in a sense that he was likely at his physical best but he wouldn’t do well in any kind post season all-European voting. To add some context, Leif Holmqvist won the Golden Puck award (Best Swedish player) and Viktor Konovalenko won the Soviet Best Player of the Year award. 1970 was pretty good season for European goalies.
Dzurilla wasn’t a member of the National team over the course of 1971 season. There was a goalie controversy with the Slovan goalies Dzurilla and Marcel Sakáč, both regarded as national team calibre goalies, fighting each other in a one club. Slovan management got greedy, they didn’t want to let go either one for 3 years just because they feared how much they would improve the team to which they’d send off Sakáč or Dzurilla.
Sakáč played more in 1971 so he got to the National team, Dzurilla would play more for Slovan in 1972 so he was with the National team then.
So even though 1971 season isn’t valuable in terms of actual achievements (what happened on the ice), I’d be wary to write that off a signal of Dzurilla’s prime being lesser than the remaining 15 goalies this round. Sakáč played another World Championship 8 years later, right after Holeček and Dzurilla retired from serious hockey 1978 to finish off their careers in Germany. Sakáč was unlisted 3rd CSSR goalie at 1972, 1973 and 1977 championships. Sakáč would have likely been a regular goalie of any other European national team in the 1970s.
Dzurilla came back strong in 1972 and played more games than Holeček at the ’72 Olympics, stayed as a backup behind Holeček at the ’72 WHC two months later. Overall, Dzurilla was considered a bit better than Holeček in this season. Even with all the justified fame Holeček earned after golden 72 WHC, Dzurilla actually finished 3rd in a domestic GS voting; Holeček ended 5th. He had a very good domestic season again (leading 0.931 SV%):
Dzurilla turned 30 in 1972-1973 season. 3-year tension between the two goalies and management culminated into an open conflict when both goalies stood up and said: "Pick one of us, or we won´t play." But since the clubs in CSSR at the time had full control over players transfers, it hardly did anything.
An article by Ivan Ďurišin in the TIP magazine mid-season:
"Slovan officials assumed that the problem is solved. Not even close, the issue is not solved to this day to satisfaction of both, as one and the other lost what they so much desired: the uniform of the National team. One played, the other sat on the bench and secretly wished for the 'fall' of his comrade because he himself wanted to go on ice."
It was a fun media drama in its time. At one point the press reported that Dzurilla has enlisted himself to the army so that Dukla Jihlava (army team) would be entitled to draft him.
Dzurilla finally changed his club at the start of 1974 season. Everyone thought he’s quitely closing off his career. In fact there was even a random fan question in the press around 74 or 75 directed at Karel Gut (CSSR coach) whether Dzurilla can return to the National team. Gut responded with a “no chance” quote and instead, the hockey association organized a retirement ceremony to Dzurilla in the mid-70s during one of national team exhibition games…
This is written to provide context for his 1976 comeback and to properly frame Dzurilla’s career. He’s the 1960s and early 1970s goaltender who unexpectedly recorded the league’s best SV% in the ’76 season narrowly over Holeček (0.924 to 0.923).
When Dzurilla boosted his reputation in front of NA audience at the Canada Cup, he was half a decade past his prime in an age where a good chunk of his former teammates had already an established coaching career.
Dzurilla was the starting goalkeeper of the Czechoslovak team when they won 1977 WHC gold medal. Finished 6th in the ’77 Golden Stick voting, and as the best Czechoslovak goalie one last time.
It would be interesting to find out more about Dzurilla’s resurgence. As he grew old, I wonder, he maybe polished his style. Maybe he put more structure into his venturing out of the crease… Or an alternative, more earthly explanation would be… better financial incentives: In 1976, a new industrial company became a sponsor of the Brno club that Dzurilla was playing for.
____________________________________________________________
In 1978, a former National team goalie (Vladimír Dvořáček) praised the, now 36 y/o goaltender, the most out of the league’s starters: “Always delivers reliable performance, draws from his experience, excellent work with the stick, covering the space and glove saves.”
Some of other descriptions are as follows. Hockeyarchives.info:
„Calm and collected goaltender who played the angles well. Surprisingly quick reflexes despite his size. Good at using his stick.“
Karel Gut, CSSR coach in the 1970s, wrote in 1985:
“Outstanding goalie who earned admiration not just in Europe but also in Canada especially in the 1970s. Perfectly handled covering of the shooting angles, was successfully stopping breakaways of opponents. Quick reactions and stick work were his big assets. His robust constitution radiated an unprecedented calmness over the team.”
His competitor Holeček was all about the inner game. He had his rituals, didn’t talk much outside the rink, tried to memorize skating and shots of individual forwards, didn’t talk on the ice, all directed toward maximum concentration. Dzurilla needed to pump himself up, to get euphoric. Both of them took inspiration from Seth Martin, but Martin’s butterfly and effectiveness in blocking on-ice shots were suited for Holeček better. Dzurilla maintained his stand-up goaltending.
An interview with Jiří Holeček, published in Gól magazine, February 1994: "You were the first one who introduced a butterfly positioning here. How much of a revolutionary new thing that was at the time?"
JH: No. I only improved it and frequently used it. Otherwise I watched it from the Canadian goalie Seth Martin, who came by here in the sixties. Vlado Dzurilla started trying a butterfly after him, and then me. Since I have had a bit looser joints, I was good at it.
The book Příběhy z hokejové branky ["Stories from hockey goal"] written by Jiří Koliš, published in 2002, described a butterfly evolution in the Holeček, Esposito, Dryden chapter:
"Hall's playing technique, completely common these days, was a real revolution in his time. Before it got 'the Butterfly' name, it used to be compared to splayed upside-down letter V. Hall's basic stance was in deep forward bend with knees closed to each other, but with skates widely spread out. It really could have reminded the upside-down 'V' looking from behind, although Hall´s new stance seemed to shooters skating forward as almost an impenetrable dam. But what was the most important, such style was exceedingly effective.
This revolutionary way of goaltending was brought to Europe by excellent American netminder Willard Ikola in the second half of the fifties. But only the Canadian goaltender of the team Trail Smoke Eaters and of the Canadian National Team, Seth Martin, who attended the World Championship six times, and was declared the best goaltender of the Championship four times, perfectly mastered the new style and made it widespread in Europe. Martin even tasted the NHL atmosphere at the end of his career - he joined the St. Louis Blues team in the 1967-68 for the thirty games of the regular season and for the two play-off games. No other than Glenn Hall was his goaltending partner.
Vlado Dzurilla tried as the first one here the butterfly position during his beginnings in the League and in the National Team. His attempts ended up with torn meniscus though. Such goaltending style wasn't suited for him. But the fifteen year-old schoolboy Jiří Holeček, who spent hours and hours observing the best ones every day at the World Championship in Prague 1959, should have shown in the next years, how the butterfly position can be effective.”
_____________________________________________________
Since the Golden Stick voting was launched in 1969, there is a lot of Dzurilla’s seasons not covered. Thus the GS doesn’t provide the picture we need. Overall, he has 8 relevant seasons in which he was either a weaker #1 goalie in Europe, or average #2, or a strong #3 goalie in Europe.
1965, 1966, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1972, 1976, 1977
Dzurilla has greater longevity than most of his competitors during the time he played. He guarded the net in front of Sven Tumba Johansson when he dressed the National team uniforms 1st time in 1960 against Sweden. He got to watch generations of Soviet players beginning with Sologubov, ending with Fetisov in 1977. He led the SC Riesersee club to the German league championship in 1981.
What’s the downside? There are some empty seasons within Dzurilla’s prime (1967, 1971) and some of his clutch performances (1969 WHC, or 1976 Canada Cup and 1977 WHC) are mitigated by a few poor games against top opponents (matches with Soviets at 1966 WHC or at Olympics 1972). His highs were not as great as those of Tretiak or Holeček.
…But we’re not comparing him with the two here… Dzurilla is arguably 3rd best non-NHL goaltender the Europe produced between the WW2 and fall of Iron Curtain.
Top 5 goalie this week.
How to rank him? Dzurilla’s prime covers the 1965-1972 period (age 23-30). He’d be the most seeked out goaltender from North American scouts during this time.
Ján Starší (CSSR national team coach over the 1970s, 1980s):
“He was a goalie who was not falling which Canadian coaches wanted to see. He perfectly covered the angles which means his spacial awareness and anticipation was on high level and that’s why he easily moved, didn’t fall and he played, we could say, the Canadian style. For these reasons we might call him the greatest European goaltender in his time.”
Jozef Golonka (CSSR national team player and captain over the 1960s):
“Vlado could have stayed in Canada thousands of times. He had offers that no other could have dreamed of.”
A fan question in the TIP magazine 1971 and Dzurilla’s response:
“If you were to receive an offer to play for professional team of Montreal or Chicago, which one would you choose?”
“I have been given an offer for a few years now. But not from Montreal nor from Chicago, but from Toronto. Truthfully though, it’s pointless to think about it.”
Vladimír Dzurilla represented a direct opposite of Jiří Holeček in many aspects; stylistically and temperamentally. Having Dzurilla and Holeček as options contributed to a great reputation of Czechoslovak goalies at the time, and to a confidence the Czechoslovak hockey public had in their netminders.
While Holeček took his time to develop, Dzurilla’s talent was imminent. He first played the Czechoslovak league game in 1959-60 as a 17 y/o. He got into the National team next season in Nov. 1960 just after 9 league games he had played so far. Translated into the context of our time, teenage Dzurilla would have been highly touted 1st or 2nd round draft pick, while Holeček would have gone undrafted.
Arne Strömberg, Swedish national team coach after Dzurilla’s 1st international game (CSSR losing to Sweden 1:3):
“Within the losing team I liked the goalie the most.”
Dzurilla would have started his international career at the 1962 WHC held in Colorado Springs, USA but for various reasons Eastern Bloc countries (USSR, Czechoslovakia, East Germany, Romania) declined their participation. Thus Dzurilla’s first championship experience came a year later.
Dzurilla switched starts with other goalies in 1963 and 1964 but he became #1 at the ’65 WHC. He was both statistically and voting-wise the best goalie of the championship.
World Championship 1965
1. Leif Holmqvist (SWE): 2 games / 0 goals allowed / 41 saves / 1.000
2. Vladimír Dzurilla (CSSR): 6 games / 6 goals allowed / 107 saves / 0.9469
3. Viktor Zinger (USSR): 2 games / 3 goals allowed / 42 saves / 0.9333
4. Ken Broderick (CAN): 5 games / 11 goals allowed / 127 saves / 0.9203
5. Peter Kolbe (E. GER): 5 games / 17 goals allowed / 181 saves / 0.9141
6. Viktor Konovalenko (USSR): 5 games / 10 goals allowed / 95 saves / 0.9048
7. Juhani Lahtinen (FIN): 6 games / 23 goals allowed / 193 saves / 0.8935
8. Urpo Ylönen (FIN): 1 game / 4 goals allowed / 27 saves / 0.8710
9. Kjell Svensson (SWE): 6 games / 17 goals allowed / 111 saves / 0.8672
10. Vladimír Nadrchal (CSSR): 2 games / 4 goals allowed / 26 saves / 0.8667
11. Tom Haugh (USA): 7 games / 44 goals allowed / 273 saves / 0.8612
12. Don Collins (CAN): 2 games / 10 goals allowed / 56 saves / 0.8485
13. Klaus Hirche (E. GER): 2 games / 16 goals allowed / 89 saves / 0.8476
14. Kåre Østensen (NOR): 6 games / 42 goals allowed / 211 saves / 0.8340
15. Thore Nilsen (NOR): 1 game / 14 goals allowed / 43 saves / 0.7544
IIHF Directoriate´s Best Goaltender: Vladimír Dzurilla
All-Star Team Voting: 1. Vladimír Dzurilla (36 votes), 2. Tom Haugh (6 votes), 3. Peter Kolbe (5 votes), 4. Ken Broderick (4 votes), 5. Juhani Lahtinen, Kjell Svensson (1 vote)
Dzurilla kept the good play throughout 1966 season but failed in the very last game, the deciding gold-medal game of CSSR vs. Soviets. He was pulled after 5 minutes when he conceded 3 goals. Czechoslovaks were actually closer to gold before the game actually since Soviets had only tied with Sweden. CSSR only needed a tie to come up first. If not for the last game, the competition for the best goalie awards might have been a close call between Dzurilla and Martin. Due to last game though, voters went for default choice and selected Martin.
Post 1966 WHC commentaries noted that Dzurilla relies on his good reflexes and cutting down shooter’s angle too much that it can undo all the good he brings. Faster leg mobility and better skating needs an improvement in order to stop his weakness – on-ice goals or goals slightly above the ice that should be blocked by legs. However, writers did not that “quick puck distribution by a goalie stick to start a counterattack is perfectly controlled and used only by Dzurilla and there is no sight of applying this useful element by any other goalie.”
Dzurilla was a unicorn in the ranks of European goalies when it came to stickhandling. Euro goalies were typically forced to stay deep in the crease and even actively discouraged to handle the puck by their coaches. Dzurilla was noted to record an assist in a league game for example. This was sometimes mentioned as an usual feat.
Stickhandling was a part of his aggressive, and sometimes overly aggresssive style, challenging and pressuring the opposing players as much as he can. Dzurilla was loud and expressive verbally, shouting at forwards to throw them off. The other side of the coin was that he himself could have been caught out of position, to skate against forward too far out or to let himself be provoked and out of focus.
All of this dynamics is still present with Dzurilla at his veteran stage of career. Canada Cup games as well as 1977 WHC games. Take a look at what nearly 35 y/o goalie allows himself to do in a gold-medal deciding game, in the 3rd period after Czechoslovakia started off 4:0, and Soviets almost equaling the score. The game did end 4:3 in favor of CSSR and they won the gold medal. From today’s perspective I think Dzurilla looks good there, certainly entertaining, effectively creating a chance for his forward; though from a stereotypical European coach of the era this was unnecessarily risky play. Time of the video should be around 1:28:30.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5rHZF9J7jbU#t=88m20s
Meanwhile Jiří Holeček’s response after end of ‘78 Championship to the question: “What is your opinion on Canadian goaltenders?”
JH: “The best of them are equal to the European goalies. Moreover, they’re great in a good work with the hockey stick, in a quick pass release. I’ve never learnt that because since youth, coaches rather forced me to play safe.”
Vladimír missed most of 1967 season due to knee injury and subsequent meniscus surgery. Dzurilla did return few weeks before the championship, but seen as unplayed, coaches took young Holeček and Nadrchal for the tournament. Meanwhile Canadian team had an exhibition game against Slovan Bratislava (1:1) couple days before the tournament. Dzurilla was the star of that game, calling into question the decision to leave him off.
Dissapointing 4th place finish of the team at 1967 WHC made it easy for Dzurilla to regain his status, even in spite of suffering another knee injury at the first league game of the 1968 season. Fortunately it didn’t require another surgery, he got back in time for the Olympics. He became a clear best Czechoslovak goalie again. Dzurilla didn’t shine statistically (0.873 in 7 games) but got a lot of praise including 5:4 win over Soviets. Dzurilla also had a comfortable lead in league SV%, finishing with 0.912 (91,2% on the picture below) when just one other starter had an SV% above 0.900.
His play continued to improve as he became one of the top European players through 1969. Won both politically charged games against the USSR. Dzurilla ended the 1st encounter with a shutout which I believe hadn’t happened before. Soviets scored (even if they lost) in every game against a European opponent in a major tournament between 1954-1968.
The games at this championship has made Dzurilla a celebrity – to the fans of Czech and Slovak hockey. Not really the Canada Cup games, although his performance there has been also frequently reminded.
Despite my description, I don't want to single out Dzurilla as the finest netminder. 1969 WHC was a close call between Dzurilla and Holmqvist.
World Championship 1969
1. Miroslav Lacký (CSSR): 3 games / 2 goals allowed / 40 saves / 0.9524
2. Ken Dryden (CAN): 2 games / 3 goals allowed / 49 saves / 0.9423
3. Gunnar Bäckman (SWE): 2 games / 2 goals allowed / 29 saves / 0.9355
4. Vladimír Dzurilla (CSSR): 9 games / 18 goals allowed / 193 saves / 0.9147
5. Leif Holmqvist (SWE): 8 games / 17 goals allowed / 180 saves / 0.9137
6. Viktor Zinger (USSR): 10 games / 21 goals allowed / 200 saves / 0.9050
7. Wayne Stephenson (CAN): 8 games / 25 goals allowed / 228 saves / 0.9012
8. Urpo Ylönen (FIN): 10 games / 49 goals allowed / 301 saves / 0.8600
9. Mike Curran (USA): 10 games / 74 goals allowed / 442 saves / 0.8566
10. Lasse Kiili (FIN): 1 game / 3 goals allowed / 15 saves / 0.8333
11. Steve Rexe (CAN): 1 (?) game / 2 goals allowed / 8 saves / 0.8000
12. Viktor Puchkov (USSR): 1 (?) game / 2 goals allowed / 7 saves / 0.7778
IIHF Directoriate´s Best Goaltender: Leif Holmqvist
All-Star Team Voting: 1. Vladimír Dzurilla (59 votes out of 150 ballots), 2. Leif Holmqvist (56 votes), 3. Mike Curran (28 votes)
Dzurilla may have hit his peak during 1970. He played his best domestically, crushed his goalie competitors and was one of the main challengers to Jan Suchý placement in the Golden Stick voting. Dzurilla’s SV% lead (0.935) over the others was quite something. See below the 1st column (games played), 2nd column (goals allowed), 3rd column (saves), and the last 4th column (SV%):
However, he faltered at the ’70 WHC. Dzurilla's performance was a disappointment there as if he ran out of energy. His backup was injured so Dzurilla had to play all 10 anyway. So 1970 is a season difficult to evaluate in a sense that he was likely at his physical best but he wouldn’t do well in any kind post season all-European voting. To add some context, Leif Holmqvist won the Golden Puck award (Best Swedish player) and Viktor Konovalenko won the Soviet Best Player of the Year award. 1970 was pretty good season for European goalies.
Dzurilla wasn’t a member of the National team over the course of 1971 season. There was a goalie controversy with the Slovan goalies Dzurilla and Marcel Sakáč, both regarded as national team calibre goalies, fighting each other in a one club. Slovan management got greedy, they didn’t want to let go either one for 3 years just because they feared how much they would improve the team to which they’d send off Sakáč or Dzurilla.
Sakáč played more in 1971 so he got to the National team, Dzurilla would play more for Slovan in 1972 so he was with the National team then.
So even though 1971 season isn’t valuable in terms of actual achievements (what happened on the ice), I’d be wary to write that off a signal of Dzurilla’s prime being lesser than the remaining 15 goalies this round. Sakáč played another World Championship 8 years later, right after Holeček and Dzurilla retired from serious hockey 1978 to finish off their careers in Germany. Sakáč was unlisted 3rd CSSR goalie at 1972, 1973 and 1977 championships. Sakáč would have likely been a regular goalie of any other European national team in the 1970s.
Dzurilla came back strong in 1972 and played more games than Holeček at the ’72 Olympics, stayed as a backup behind Holeček at the ’72 WHC two months later. Overall, Dzurilla was considered a bit better than Holeček in this season. Even with all the justified fame Holeček earned after golden 72 WHC, Dzurilla actually finished 3rd in a domestic GS voting; Holeček ended 5th. He had a very good domestic season again (leading 0.931 SV%):
Dzurilla turned 30 in 1972-1973 season. 3-year tension between the two goalies and management culminated into an open conflict when both goalies stood up and said: "Pick one of us, or we won´t play." But since the clubs in CSSR at the time had full control over players transfers, it hardly did anything.
An article by Ivan Ďurišin in the TIP magazine mid-season:
"Slovan officials assumed that the problem is solved. Not even close, the issue is not solved to this day to satisfaction of both, as one and the other lost what they so much desired: the uniform of the National team. One played, the other sat on the bench and secretly wished for the 'fall' of his comrade because he himself wanted to go on ice."
It was a fun media drama in its time. At one point the press reported that Dzurilla has enlisted himself to the army so that Dukla Jihlava (army team) would be entitled to draft him.
Dzurilla finally changed his club at the start of 1974 season. Everyone thought he’s quitely closing off his career. In fact there was even a random fan question in the press around 74 or 75 directed at Karel Gut (CSSR coach) whether Dzurilla can return to the National team. Gut responded with a “no chance” quote and instead, the hockey association organized a retirement ceremony to Dzurilla in the mid-70s during one of national team exhibition games…
This is written to provide context for his 1976 comeback and to properly frame Dzurilla’s career. He’s the 1960s and early 1970s goaltender who unexpectedly recorded the league’s best SV% in the ’76 season narrowly over Holeček (0.924 to 0.923).
When Dzurilla boosted his reputation in front of NA audience at the Canada Cup, he was half a decade past his prime in an age where a good chunk of his former teammates had already an established coaching career.
Dzurilla was the starting goalkeeper of the Czechoslovak team when they won 1977 WHC gold medal. Finished 6th in the ’77 Golden Stick voting, and as the best Czechoslovak goalie one last time.
It would be interesting to find out more about Dzurilla’s resurgence. As he grew old, I wonder, he maybe polished his style. Maybe he put more structure into his venturing out of the crease… Or an alternative, more earthly explanation would be… better financial incentives: In 1976, a new industrial company became a sponsor of the Brno club that Dzurilla was playing for.
____________________________________________________________
In 1978, a former National team goalie (Vladimír Dvořáček) praised the, now 36 y/o goaltender, the most out of the league’s starters: “Always delivers reliable performance, draws from his experience, excellent work with the stick, covering the space and glove saves.”
Some of other descriptions are as follows. Hockeyarchives.info:
„Calm and collected goaltender who played the angles well. Surprisingly quick reflexes despite his size. Good at using his stick.“
Karel Gut, CSSR coach in the 1970s, wrote in 1985:
“Outstanding goalie who earned admiration not just in Europe but also in Canada especially in the 1970s. Perfectly handled covering of the shooting angles, was successfully stopping breakaways of opponents. Quick reactions and stick work were his big assets. His robust constitution radiated an unprecedented calmness over the team.”
His competitor Holeček was all about the inner game. He had his rituals, didn’t talk much outside the rink, tried to memorize skating and shots of individual forwards, didn’t talk on the ice, all directed toward maximum concentration. Dzurilla needed to pump himself up, to get euphoric. Both of them took inspiration from Seth Martin, but Martin’s butterfly and effectiveness in blocking on-ice shots were suited for Holeček better. Dzurilla maintained his stand-up goaltending.
An interview with Jiří Holeček, published in Gól magazine, February 1994: "You were the first one who introduced a butterfly positioning here. How much of a revolutionary new thing that was at the time?"
JH: No. I only improved it and frequently used it. Otherwise I watched it from the Canadian goalie Seth Martin, who came by here in the sixties. Vlado Dzurilla started trying a butterfly after him, and then me. Since I have had a bit looser joints, I was good at it.
The book Příběhy z hokejové branky ["Stories from hockey goal"] written by Jiří Koliš, published in 2002, described a butterfly evolution in the Holeček, Esposito, Dryden chapter:
"Hall's playing technique, completely common these days, was a real revolution in his time. Before it got 'the Butterfly' name, it used to be compared to splayed upside-down letter V. Hall's basic stance was in deep forward bend with knees closed to each other, but with skates widely spread out. It really could have reminded the upside-down 'V' looking from behind, although Hall´s new stance seemed to shooters skating forward as almost an impenetrable dam. But what was the most important, such style was exceedingly effective.
This revolutionary way of goaltending was brought to Europe by excellent American netminder Willard Ikola in the second half of the fifties. But only the Canadian goaltender of the team Trail Smoke Eaters and of the Canadian National Team, Seth Martin, who attended the World Championship six times, and was declared the best goaltender of the Championship four times, perfectly mastered the new style and made it widespread in Europe. Martin even tasted the NHL atmosphere at the end of his career - he joined the St. Louis Blues team in the 1967-68 for the thirty games of the regular season and for the two play-off games. No other than Glenn Hall was his goaltending partner.
Vlado Dzurilla tried as the first one here the butterfly position during his beginnings in the League and in the National Team. His attempts ended up with torn meniscus though. Such goaltending style wasn't suited for him. But the fifteen year-old schoolboy Jiří Holeček, who spent hours and hours observing the best ones every day at the World Championship in Prague 1959, should have shown in the next years, how the butterfly position can be effective.”
_____________________________________________________
Since the Golden Stick voting was launched in 1969, there is a lot of Dzurilla’s seasons not covered. Thus the GS doesn’t provide the picture we need. Overall, he has 8 relevant seasons in which he was either a weaker #1 goalie in Europe, or average #2, or a strong #3 goalie in Europe.
1965, 1966, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1972, 1976, 1977
Dzurilla has greater longevity than most of his competitors during the time he played. He guarded the net in front of Sven Tumba Johansson when he dressed the National team uniforms 1st time in 1960 against Sweden. He got to watch generations of Soviet players beginning with Sologubov, ending with Fetisov in 1977. He led the SC Riesersee club to the German league championship in 1981.
What’s the downside? There are some empty seasons within Dzurilla’s prime (1967, 1971) and some of his clutch performances (1969 WHC, or 1976 Canada Cup and 1977 WHC) are mitigated by a few poor games against top opponents (matches with Soviets at 1966 WHC or at Olympics 1972). His highs were not as great as those of Tretiak or Holeček.
…But we’re not comparing him with the two here… Dzurilla is arguably 3rd best non-NHL goaltender the Europe produced between the WW2 and fall of Iron Curtain.
Top 5 goalie this week.
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