No Crown Fit For This King

November 27, 2009   ·   Derek Felix   ·   Jump to comments

Okay. So, it’s not the Rangers night. That much was obvious early with the Lightning scoring twice and continuing to dominate a game that’s now 4-zip. Too much Steven Stamkos and Marty St. Louis. Andrej Meszaros also made a great defensive play to deny Marian Gaborik a breakaway. And no. That wasn’t a penalty.

If Artem Anisimov had bad luck on the high stick which Victor Hedman held that led to a power play goal from Steve Downie, then that wasn’t the case with Ales Kotalik, whose undisciplined minor running into Mike Smith behind the net negated a Ranger PP, which of course the Bolts scored on when Kurtis Foster picked high glove on Henrik Lundqvist. That it came off a one-timer from 40 feet unscreened was the latest glaring example of why our overrated goalie isn’t elite. On a setup he had plenty of time to get set for, instead there was the King looking more Queen on all fours, exposing the glaring weakness. Had he been more square, it would’ve been an easy glove save.

Sadly, in Year 5, Henrik hasn’t made any adjustment. In fact, he has gotten worse. He stinks on breakaways. Once a strength, he plays way too passively back in his net, allowing attacking shooters too much daylight. Anyone can see what’s wrong. But why can’t our GQ-sessed netminder? It used to be that he was more aggressive taking away the angles. Part of that might be due to goalie coach Benoit Allaire, who might be protecting his weakness. However, doesn’t Lundqvist have a say or is he just content as being a good goalie who has gotten overexposed under the bright lights? You have to begin to question whether he wants to really be the best. Has life become too cozy with supermodels and photo shoots more on the radar than stoning the opposition? As evidenced tonight, he hasn’t helped the cause permitting two bad goals, including one which was entirely his fault because he didn’t come out to play the puck. When does he ever help our D? I could care less if his stickhandling is ECHL caliber. You don’t always leave your guys hanging. Exactly why the fourth Tampa goal happened. Another scrub’s first which came off a bad rebound. Where are the big saves?

Granted. This isn’t close to a championship roster but rather one in transition. Even if Gaborik lights it up with Vinny Prospal, what else is there? There’s not a ton of skill. Until Anisimov matures and Evgeny Grachev graduates the ‘A,’ the Blueshirts don’t possess many legit scorers. Ryan Callahan is stuck on four (snapped seven game drought) because he has no one passing him the puck. Brandon Dubinsky, who they miss, hasn’t played to potential and it now seems they should’ve traded him when they had the chance. Especially if Derek Stepan, who is having another big night at Wisconsin, is as good as advertised.

So, what else is wrong with our forwards? Let’s see. We went from a playable fourth line to none. Though Brian Boyle tries, he has nobody to play with. Out of the supporting cast, Chris Higgins and Sean Avery are working hardest along with Cally but all three must get on the score sheet through hard work. Ditto for captain Chris Drury, who looks a little better since returning. Anisimov is the most skilled young forward and we really believe he has better upside than Dubinsky. But the lanky Russian’s in his first year. So, there will continue to be peaks and valleys. His production (5-7-12 in 25 GP) hasn’t been bad. He’s already a solid two-way pivot but has unlimited talent. It’s why Tort must continue to give him lots of ice. As for Kotalik, he’s a waste if he’s not hitting the net via the man-advantage. He always takes bad penalties (mostly offensive zone) and is a liability at even strength though he has capability. After a good start, Enver Lisin has emulated the former No.81 Marcel Hossa. I just don’t see why he deserves to play. Especially when P.A. Parenteau’s better. They want to keep him in, stick him with Boyle.

The blueline has promise with MDZ and Matt Gilroy taking their lumps. We all know how good Del Zotto is but Gilroy is steadying. It’s good at least that Bobby Sanguinetti, on for one goal against, is finally getting NHL experience. They need to try him on the point. There’s a reason he leads all AHL D in scoring. Not sure if Tinman returns tomorrow as he’s day-to-day. So, maybe we’ll see more of Sangs in a challenging home-and-home with the defending Cup champion Pens. Marc Staal is up and down but only 22 in Year 3 and Dan Girardi is pretty much the same. After a poor start, Girardi’s played better and had to cover for Staal, who’s lost some of his edge. Don’t forget. He’s up after the year. Do they re-sign him? At this point, I don’t see why not. Our D’s not great to begin with. Unless the kids are finally ready, figure they bring him back. Hopefully, it’s reasonable. There’s no question Michal Rozsival has to go as he’s just a shell of himself. Redden at least has improved. If we can move Rozy, great. They should just designate him and take the hit.

Which leaves us back to the goalie who’s gotten the franchise out of the dumps. Four straight years, they’ve gone to the playoffs and Lundqvist has been a huge part of that. They’ve made Round Two only twice. Though you couldn’t blame him for what happened against a much more talented Cap team led by Ovechkin. They never would’ve been in winning position without Henrik, who elevated his play last Spring. So, what’s wrong with him now? He got off to a great start and looked ready to challenge for his first Vezina. But again, the November slump has hit but he seems to have more weaknesses as we’ve alluded to. Even Stamkos’ 16th which was wide open in the slot wasn’t great. It went low which is a Henrik strength.

Another area of concern is rebound control, which has gotten worse as the season’s gone on. The best goalies can put the puck in safe areas where they can’t be buried. But there are far too many instances where he is allowing second and third chances. If he truly is to be the next goalie to lead this club back to the promised land a la Mike Richter, Lundqvist needs to take a good hard look in the mirror. He’s not coming close to delivering. Especially for his hefty salary.

In a year where the coach lauded him as the “game’s best” which would allow the team to play the high risk/reward style, it’s the goalie who’s not producing. Time for that to change.