First of all, do not use the Lord's name in vein in any thread in which you are addressing me.
Second, have I ever watched a game from the 80's? Of course I have. I have one of the largest collections of game tapes in the US. I actually worked as a goalie coach for awhile a long time ago, and I was one of the few remaining stand-up goaltenders when I finished playing.
Next, the fact that you claim that positioning has gotten better simply proves that you have no idea what you are talking about. Positioning was the entire basis for the stand-up style. If you didn't have good positioning, you didn't stop any pucks.
Positioning is exactly what is wrong with today's goalies. The butterfly is great against people who cannot shoot high. But if you play against players with skill, you are a good skater and you position yourself like the best positional goalies did, the positional goalies have a distinct advantage over the butterfly guys. I played against butterfly guys and I ate them for lunch because of positioning.
You take your backup from today. I will take Ken Dryden.
Find someone who saw Dryden play who would take Manny Fernandez or Roberto Luongo over him.
Players are better coached today, but the plays aren't any more advanced than they were before. The trap has been around since the 50's in case you didn't know. The Russians played it in '56. Today's plays are simply taken from the past.
You young whippersnappers and your myopic viewpoints...