I don't understand

[mizzoublues29]

That was where I stopped reading. Cmon.

That's fine. I know you're feelings towards Halak aren't exactly supportive.

 

[mizzoublues29]

He lifted the net, shouldn't have counted by that. But it did not push Halak's foot forward. The net didn't come off the mooring's until after the goal. He lifted the net, didn't push the posts forward at all. Even if he didn't it shouldn't be enough force to keep your skate off the post as an NHL goalie. Also he wouldn't have had his foot "pushed" off the post so easily if he hadn't fallen to his stomach and instead stood tall and shifted his weight over to hug the post than putting himself in such a vulnerable position.

If he doesn't stretch his left pad and end up on his stomach than he doesn't make the 2nd save. And yes, when you're in that position the post will absolutely push the skates enough to create a gap. Don't forget that this game is played on ice.

"stood tall and shifted his weight" doesn't even register. He was in the b-fly from the 1st save and again, only by stretching can he get his left skate to the post for the 2nd save in time. You'd be very hard pressed to find a goalie that would have played that any different.

 

[Captain Creampuff]

If he doesn't stretch his left pad and end up on his stomach than he doesn't make the 2nd save. And yes, when you're in that position the post will absolutely push the skates enough to create a gap. Don't forget that this game is played on ice.

Wrong, watch the replay again. He had his leg on the post before he fell on his stomach.

 

[brendan]

The Halak hate on this board is ridiculous. He can be an elite goaltender as we saw last season.

 

[Captain Creampuff]

The Halak hate on this board is ridiculous. He can be an elite goaltender as we saw last season.

Can be and is are 2 different things.

 

[brendan]

Can be and is are 2 different things.

Well okay then.


He was an elite goalie last season.

 

[mizzoublues29]

Wrong, watch the replay again. He had his leg on the post before he fell on his stomach.

I've watched it about 5 times tonight. It's all the same motion to make the 2nd save. He's in great position to make the 3rd save if the post doesn't push his skate.

 

[Boromir Jagr*]

Well okay then.


He was an elite goalie last season.

after the coach got fired

 

[brendan]

after the coach got fired

Really ? You're going to resort to that excuse?..

That was like 10 games into the season. Big ****ing deal

 

[BlueDream]

I would have stated it regardless of what anyone else says.

To suggest that Halak (or any NHL caliber goaltender) has no elite goaltending skills is just asinine and blatant ignorance.

Halak has given the Blues a chance to win nearly every start. The defense (as a whole - forward's d-zone coverage and backchecking...) has been awful this year, just awful.

No he hasn't. This post is off to a rocky start.

The defense has been bad but we still allow the fewest shots in the NHL and he can't get the job done (nor can Elliott). I understand facing more shots gets them in more of a groove but c'mon, your job is to stop the puck no matter if you face 10 or 50 shots, as Jake Allen said. He's getting paid big money, so stop the ****ing puck. The defense is an issue but Halak/Elliott are also two humongous issues, don't deny that and just blame it on the defense. Halak has not been good at all.

As for he "lets pucks hit him", well you should familiarize yourself with the modern b-fly goaltending style which utilizes precision positioning/angles and "blocking" as opposed to pure reaction. Is his positioning perfect? No, but it's hardly worse than any other goaltender that he's matched up against every night. He does have a tendency to get beat low-blocker from right handed shots (an against the grain type play) and when shooters change the angle. As do many right-handed blocker tendy's, the level of difficulty on those shots is very, very high.

Uh, ok. Doesn't seem to be very successful for him.

His glove hand isn't great, but it's not bad either. Its positioning is fine, gap closure looks good. You just won't see him make an inordinate amount of highlight glove saves, and I don't think the majority of glove side goals are actually within glove range because...;

His glove sucks and has been the knock on him from scouts his entire career.

Virtually unbeatable down low, it's been a while since he's given up a bad 5-hole goal (I think). He's not wrong about the play with Redden, I don't know why so many people are so hung up about his comments.

Virtually unbeatable is pretty funny. As another poster said his 5-hole isn't as bad as Elliott's but it's not as great as you make it seem. And people are so hung up about his comments because it was a weak goal that he should have stopped instead of making excuses. Not hard to understand.

His ability to scramble and recover is among the best in the league, so is his lateral movement.

HAHA. No it isn't, don't lie. He is pretty slow post-to-post in net.

His positioning and the way he sets up is also extremely conservative.

No, he hasn't been able to steal games this year as compared to his previous performances...but he is hardly this team's issue.

Again this is false, how can you even say that? He has .897 save%. Him and Elliott are two of the biggest issues on this team or else we wouldn't have to worry about yo-yo-ing Jake Allen back and forth.

Edit: he is absolutely a #1 NHL goaltender. He may not be a 70 game/year goalie, but he is a very solid #1.

Eh, a #1 sure. But a very good, reliable #1 that can take a team far consistently? That's where I have doubts. The guy can barely stay healthy for Christ's sake. He has some good flashes but is soooo inconsistent and has way too many poor outings to be continuously counted on. He hasn't been able to handle the #1 job consistently in his time with the Blues except when Conklin was the backup, really.

Edit again: His skating and balance is very, very good. While his puck-playing ability isn't great...it's so far down my list of criteria to judge goalies that I consider it irrelevant. Unless you're Marty Brodeur or Turco, it's largely overrated and not at all pertinent.

LOL seriously? This just seems like you're desperate to prove your point. His skating and balance is very good? How is it any better than any other goalie? Can some goalies not skate or stay on their feet? Give me a break.

Funny how his skating is apparently relevant to you but playing the puck isn't. Just, no.

 

[BlueDream]

Cudi, Halak got off to a horrible start again last year. So he was elite for maybe ~35 games behind one of the best defensive teams in hockey? Oh how amazing!

The question is whether he can do that consistently as a full-time starter. So far he hasn't been able to.

 

[brendan]

That's fine. I know you're feelings towards Halak aren't exactly supportive.

98% of this board is anti-Halak, unfortunately

 

[mizzoublues29]

Funny how his skating is apparently relevant to you but playing the puck isn't. Just, no.

I'm referring to his skating ability as a goaltender, which is inherently different from "skating" as a general term.

 

[JustOneB4IDie]

I'm on record saying that Halak isn't a #1 Goalie. Trade Halak by the deadline, there are possibilities : I can dream about a change between the pipes, just saying...

Rumors that Washington is a possible destination for Halak per TSN, for Neuvirth? No... Holtby? Oh yeah.

Phoenix Coyotes G Mike Smith is a UFA this Summer. I know Armstrong wanted to sign Smith instead of Elliott 2 years ago. I'd trade Halak straight up for Smith even though Smith's a pending UFA.

Howard still has not resigned with the Wings is another. I don't see Howard leaving the Wings.

Other UFA Goalies this Summer are the aging Backstrom of the Wild & Tim Thomas, Khabibulin & Nabokov.

 

[Colt 55]

Halak has not been and will never be a number one goalie. Why did montreal trade him instead of Price if he has #1 potential? Two great playoff series,THREE YEARS AGO, does not make him the best option for this team.

 

[Captain Creampuff]

Miller has shown he can be a true #1 with plenty of playoff experience. His contract really isn't that bad compared to other goalies of his skill level. We don't need future's anymore and I would trade Halak+1st for Miller no questions asked if Stillman feels he wants to put a money into this team to make it better. He has taken the Sabres to the Conference Finals twice and the Quarter-Finals twice.

 

[Colt 55]

Well okay then.


He was an elite goalie last season.

He was nothing close to being elite. Playing in front of one of the best defenses of all time does not make you elite, remember Turek? If he was "elite" as you say, why did he split time with elliot? Is it just me or does it seem like an ELITE goalie should play at least 50 game?

Career 2.41 goals against is nothing close to being ELITE.

What evidence do you have to support these claims of his ELITE goaltender status? I have yet to see one good fact out of any of your post defending Halak. You seem to have blind faith, that someday we will see the goalie we saw in the '10 playoffs.

 

[Alklha]

He was nothing close to being elite. Playing in front of one of the best defenses of all time does not make you elite, remember Turek? If he was "elite" as you say, why did he split time with elliot? Is it just me or does it seem like an ELITE goalie should play at least 50 game?

Career 2.41 goals against is nothing close to being ELITE.

What evidence do you have to support these claims of his ELITE goaltender status? I have yet to see one good fact out of any of your post defending Halak. You seem to have blind faith, that someday we will see the goalie we saw in the '10 playoffs.

If you have 2 goalies playing outstanding, then you rotate. To suggest that Halák and Elliott weren't playing elite level hockey last season is simply stupid. A large part in the difference in goaltending at this level is mental; both goalies had insane levels of confidence last season and they rode that. Part of that confidence came from the defense, but go back and watch how they played as well...

Career GAA? Really? Please tell me what an elite level career GAA is.

I don't think Jaro is elite, but he is nowhere as bad as some people like to make out he is.

 

[CitizenSnips]

He was nothing close to being elite. Playing in front of one of the best defenses of all time does not make you elite, remember Turek? If he was "elite" as you say, why did he split time with elliot? Is it just me or does it seem like an ELITE goalie should play at least 50 game?

Career 2.41 goals against is nothing close to being ELITE.

What evidence do you have to support these claims of his ELITE goaltender status? I have yet to see one good fact out of any of your post defending Halak. You seem to have blind faith, that someday we will see the goalie we saw in the '10 playoffs.

I would like to try to understand how to follow the logic going on around here so please help.

If Halak posts a 9.26 SV% and 1.97 GAA and plays the roll of the #1 goalie in a 1/1A situation where the team in front of him posted one of the best defenses of all time, you all want to say its the defense who did great. Then when Halak struggles, its only on him and not the defense. Why is the only thing that is allowed to change is the goaltending?

I am not trying to defend Halak's poor play and I'm not even going to get into Elliott, but where is the hate and trade requests for the defense? Petro, Shattenkirk, Polak, Russell (until recently) have all been under-performing but not as much blame shelled out to those members that are supposed to be one of the all time great defenses only a year ago.

 

[CitizenSnips]

He was nothing close to being elite. Playing in front of one of the best defenses of all time does not make you elite, remember Turek? If he was "elite" as you say, why did he split time with elliot? Is it just me or does it seem like an ELITE goalie should play at least 50 game?

Career 2.41 goals against is nothing close to being ELITE.

What evidence do you have to support these claims of his ELITE goaltender status? I have yet to see one good fact out of any of your post defending Halak. You seem to have blind faith, that someday we will see the goalie we saw in the '10 playoffs.

Take a look at Patrick Roy's career's GAA. That point is just silly.

 

[JustOneB4IDie]

Miller has shoto alwn he can be a true #1 with plenty of playoff experience. His contract really isn't that bad compared to other goalies of his skill level. We don't need future's anymore and I would trade Halak+1st for Miller no questions asked if Stillman feels he wants to put a money into this team to make it better. He has taken the Sabres to the Conference Finals twice and the Quarter-Finals twice.

I'm all in favor of this obviously, but of course I'm in the minority, so be it. I've followed this team for 40+ years now, long before social media, HF, and blogs

Now I ask to all Halak supporters out there : Do you really believe Halak is the Numro Uno A#1 Goalie to bring the Blues 1st Stanley Cup to St. Louis before UFA status in 2014? C'mon...

Mods? How about a poll? to find out exactly how everyone feels about Halak :

A) Keep
B) Trade

 

[Bluesnatic27]

St. Louis fans are sounding more and more like Vancouver fans by every passing day

 

[2 Minute Minor]

St. Louis fans are sounding more and more like Vancouver fans by every passing day

Its getting harder to find good commentary on this forum. There is increasingly more emotion-laden extremism and pissing matches. But its still better than any alternative I've found.

 

[Daley Tarasenkshow]

As the OP I was expecting more bash on Elliot then halak. Point is, out best goalie this year is in the minors...I still don't get it. I think it's too early to tell this year whether or not halak is elite. Since we want to give halak a chance, the rest of year will be his test.

Just get rid of Elliot. That's all I ask. Call up Allen.

 

[brendan]

He was nothing close to being elite. Playing in front of one of the best defenses of all time does not make you elite, remember Turek? If he was "elite" as you say, why did he split time with elliot? Is it just me or does it seem like an ELITE goalie should play at least 50 game?

Career 2.41 goals against is nothing close to being ELITE.

What evidence do you have to support these claims of his ELITE goaltender status? I have yet to see one good fact out of any of your post defending Halak. You seem to have blind faith, that someday we will see the goalie we saw in the '10 playoffs.

You're resorting to GAA to determine an elite goalie? Well then using you're argument.. Jaro had a 1.97 GAA last season. That's pretty elite. Sure, he isn't playing at that elite level right now, but he has an elite talent as we all saw last year.

Your hate against Halak is completely over the top.