Justin Hein Hockey Wilderness Contributor Posted December 22, 2023 Share Posted December 22, 2023 View full article Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Citizen Strife Verified Member Posted December 22, 2023 Share Posted December 22, 2023 Gus was at his best last year when he played controlled and "safe." He sees the play and lets the shot come to him and avoid high danger rebounds or side to side tap instead. He's not Fleury (no one is really), so the more the team can do keeping players and dangerous pucks away from him let's the game feel more controlled. It is definitely tough against teams like Toronto who have the players and style to turns everything into a run and fun affair. Hynes is content to slow the game down and take those lower scoring games. The Wild is at its best that way, and Gus is shining because of it. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justin Hein Hockey Wilderness Contributor Posted December 22, 2023 Author Share Posted December 22, 2023 16 minutes ago, Citizen Strife said: Gus was at his best last year when he played controlled and "safe." He sees the play and lets the shot come to him and avoid high danger rebounds or side to side tap instead. He's not Fleury (no one is really), so the more the team can do keeping players and dangerous pucks away from him let's the game feel more controlled. It is definitely tough against teams like Toronto who have the players and style to turns everything into a run and fun affair. Hynes is content to slow the game down and take those lower scoring games. The Wild is at its best that way, and Gus is shining because of it. You hit it on the head here -- Gus is a big, positional goaltender. They do best when the defense prevents him from having to move laterally. Gus was actually better than Fleury last year in most analytics, but to your point Fleury performed better against high-danger shots. Flower has always had that agility and flair for dramatic saves, which is what makes him so much fun to watch. 3 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mnfaninnc Verified Member Posted December 23, 2023 Share Posted December 23, 2023 Lost in the trip home to Sweden was a visit to his old goalie coach. Sweden has a long history of providing the NHL with excellent goaltenders. To me, it would be a good idea to look up the Lulea coach and possibly bring him on staff, perhaps as the assistant goalie coach. If we're moving forward with The Wall and Goose2, having the Swedish coach could pay dividends as he's familiar with the science of their training. I can tell you that Swedish 'tenders see the ice a little differently and having a coach familiar with that perspective might be an advantage. The 25 year old thing is also something we need to take into consideration. History tells us that goalies typically make their mark in this year of their life. I'd say Goose2 was a year ahead of that curve. I'd also like to remind everyone that last season Goose2 also got off to a slow start. It could be that he also needs to see a certain amount of rubber before he gets in his zone? Yet, I do believe that Hynes' system and emphasis has helped. Imagine what that will be like once Spurgeon and Brodin get back! 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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