Player Discussion David Rittich

[lakai17]

Small sample size yet recently has had decent outings.

What are the thoughts or expectations out of Rittich here?

Click to read more...

 

[OvermanKingGainer]

He's been excellent for us since basically his second game in the AHL. It took them too long to finally call him up and they muddled around with the less dependable Jon Gillies too long too.

As an NHL backup he's been solid, I'd like to see him get more starts.

As far as being a future starter, that'd be nice, if we can ween him in as Smith ages out, but Flames are a cursed franchise (because they waived Paul Byron) so he will probably go full Scrivens if given the reigns as a starter. I'd feel a lot more confident giving him a bigger role if Colin Zulianello were his goalie coach and not Jordan Sigalet, as I have felt our goalies steadily decline under Sigalet. Starter upside is definitely there though.

From a technical perspective, he's a joy to watch. Great reflexes, strong positioning, excellent rebound control, solid puck skills... if you were taking Sugar, Spice, and Everything Nice, plus Chemical XXXIII you would get Rittich from a viewing perspective. The only people that deride his ability are the ones who aren't very good at player assessment.

 

[Calculon]

Needs more starts. Hard to say what he projects to at this stage since he needs more starts. But really glad the Flames took the chance to see what he can do at the NHL level rather than stick with the declining vet because he's a vet in Lack. More starts, more responsibility could determine whether Rittich could be considered as a possible successor to Smith when he leaves/retires after next year.

Most mind bottling thing thus far is that apparently, the Flames managed to find a competent goalie that came through their system.

 

[Mobiandi]

He should get at least 15-20 of our remaining games but he'll probably only get like 10

 

[Johnny Hoxville]

“Flames are a cursed franchise because they waived Paul Byron”.

 

[Mr Snrub]

I'd like to see him get about a third of the remaining games but it of course won't happen. Next year will be his real test. Doubt he has starter upside but I think he makes a solid backup or 1B in a tandem, e.g. Brian Elliott

 

[Unlimited Chequing]

This kid's gonna be our next captain.

 

[DFF]

You never know with goalies, especially drafted by the Flames. He may be the best of them all.

Craig Anderson were never signed, they went for "better" prospects like Krahn and Medvedev and looked what happened.

 

[Volica]

Goalies are such strange creatures, he needs more starts before I get too excited. But tremendous so far.

 

[Mobiandi]

Small NHL sample size so far but I really like how cool he stays under pressure. You could basically feel the anxiety exuding from Ramo and Hiller

 

[Lunatik]

He should get at least 15-20 of our remaining games but he'll probably only get like 10

15-20 games? More like 10-15. Smith is the reason we are still in the playoff picture, sitting him for half the remaining games would be absolutely f***ing stupid.

 

[Mobiandi]

15-20 games? More like 10-15. Smith is the reason we are still in the playoff picture, sitting him for half the remaining games would be absolutely ****ing stupid.

He's already played 33 of 39 games. His "mileage" may be low but he's no spring chicken. Even if we make the playoffs, a 60-65+ game season for him might tire him out by the time the post-season rolls around.

I think they should start increasing Rittich's starts now to see if he can handle an increased workload. Smith went cold for a bit but returned to form against Chicago and Anaheim after the break. It would be to our benefit if we could start winning more while also keeping Smith fresh

 

[Lunatik]

He's already played 33 of 39 games. His "mileage" may be low but he's no spring chicken. Even if we make the playoffs, a 60-65+ game season for him might tire him out by the time the post-season rolls around.

I think they should start increasing Rittich's starts now to see if he can handle an increased workload. Smith went cold for a bit but returned to form against Chicago and Anaheim after the break. It would be to our benefit if we could start winning more while also keeping Smith fresh

You do realize, when Smith plays the games and when he rest is actually more important than the actual number games played right? Smith started so much because we had a favorable schedule in terms of back to backs. Smith has been relieved in each back to back except one and that was followed by several days off. Rittich will get more starts for the simple reason that back to backs will be more frequent in the second half and without long breaks following them.

 

[Anglesmith]

He's been every bit as good as Joni Ortio in his first few starts. So, you know.... my optimism is as cautious as ever.

 

[Bjornar Moxnes]

He's been every bit as good as Joni Ortio in his first few starts. So, you know.... my optimism is as cautious as ever.

Ortio after 5 NHL games:
2-3-0 with a Sv% of 90.68 and a GAA of 2.24.

Rittich:
3-1-1 with a Sv% of 92.37 and a GAA of 2.03.

Both faced 118 shots in this time frame, Rittich made 2 more saves than Ortio.

 

[Lunatik]

Ortio after 5 NHL games:
2-3-0 with a Sv% of 90.68 and a GAA of 2.24.

Rittich:
3-1-1 with a Sv% of 92.37 and a GAA of 2.03.

Both faced 118 shots in this time frame, Rittich made 2 more saves than Ortio.

You provide these stats, then your bottom sentence says it all. Rittich only made 2 more saves than Ortio in the same number of shots. And now is the kicker, Ortio did that for a club that drafted 6th overall that year. Put Rittich in front of 2012-13 team and how does he look?

 

[DomBarr]

Want to see a greater sample size. I do believe that the Flames see him mature and developed enough to handle NHL back-up duties but see Gillies/Parsons as having higher upside but re

 

[InfinityIggy]

You provide these stats, then your bottom sentence says it all. Rittich only made 2 more saves than Ortio in the same number of shots. And now is the kicker, Ortio did that for a club that drafted 6th overall that year. Put Rittich in front of 2012-13 team and how does he look?

So what you're saying is: We should've given Ortio more chances.

 

[Johnny Hoxville]

So what you're saying is: We should've given Ortio more chances.

Joni was handsome.

 

[Flameshomer]

Ortio was prone to real stinkers though- those numbers don't show how hot/cold he was. Not good for team confidence. Rittich seem more consistent, which is a big deal for goalies.

 

[Mr Snrub]

I don't think Ortio ever got a fair shake up here. Unfortunately his growing pains coincided with Gillies needing to turn pro and he got tossed; I was pretty sure he was gonna become an NHLer with a little luck and a few injuries to guys ahead of him in the depth chart.

 

[Johnny Hoxville]

Rittich definitely plays calm game in net, he’s big and he’s so fundamentally sound. He’s impressive for sure.

 

[Yarborough]

I like that he shows emotion in net, he kinda reminds of Smith in that way. His emotion is different though. Smith has this aggression that you can sense but Rittich kinda seems like the kind of loopy goalie that shows really exaggerated emotion if that makes sense.

 

[DFF]

You provide these stats, then your bottom sentence says it all. Rittich only made 2 more saves than Ortio in the same number of shots. And now is the kicker, Ortio did that for a club that drafted 6th overall that year. Put Rittich in front of 2012-13 team and how does he look?

The current version is 10th from the bottom so it's not that far off.

You need to stop talking like this is some kind of good club.

 

[Ace Rimmer]