Marc-Andre Fleury

[Plural]

He’s a HOFer imo.

I like Fleury and it's great to see him having success with the VGK, but he's not a Hall of Famer.

 

[PunkRockLocke]

He should end up in the HOF

 

[David Lunch]

Fleury is great, but I have to say that it's misleading to look at his numbers in this first round series. The Kings are barely able to sustain any O-zone pressure and are mostly shooting from low scoring areas. The Kings offense is just unbearably inept right now (I'm a Kings fan fyi).

 

[Nasti]

Not to take anything away from him, but let’s see how he does against a team that can actually score. And no, he’s not a HOFer.

 

[Plural]

He should end up in the HOF

Why exactly? Twice in his career has he had any Vezina votes (both times he had one 3rd place vote, which is as weak as possible) and his best All-Star voting placement is 6th. His individual stats are nothing to write home about and he's played in some very strong teams.

He's the Shane Doan of goalies. It's not an insult, he's had great career. But he's not a Hall of Famer.

 

[HanSolo]

Echoing my happiness with Fleury's play. He's wired in and focused but I gotta say, the Kings aren't giving him very tough shots to deal with.

 

[Rhaegar Targaryen]

I’m no Penguins fan but always loved Fleury. A fun personality and a fun goalie to watch. Tons and tons of talent and athleticism on that guy.

To say he wasn’t a Penguins problem between 2010-2014 is not true. Perhaps the team wasn’t the best, but Fleury was letting in weak goal after weak goal. It was clearly in his head.

I think a fresh start is exactly what he needed. He’s been able to focus and lead his team.

 

[MetalheadPenguinsFan]

Great to see him having such success

 

[ZeroPucksGiven]

No it isn't, but it is tough for Penguins fans to be objective about the guy like you can't seem to be, since he was such a polarizing figure on your boards. The people who hated him on HF Pens hated him with a blinding passion, and there was always a big debate about it.

Fleury was the release valve for all of the Penguins fans frustrations from 2010-2014 but they didn't realise that there were deeper issues. It was the same Fleury that posted .930+ under Michel Therrien in the playoffs, but the team in front of him under Bylsma would have made any goalie look bad. Though he did have a penchant for some mindbogglingly flukey goals to be scored against him which compounded the issue.

It comes down to the basic tenet that the system is more important than the goalie. It's how Devan Dubnyk was at one point the laughing stock in the league in Edmonton but a Vezina nominee in Minnesota. Brian Elliott an .891 goalie in Colorado then the next year .940 in St. Louis.

Fleury was the victim of an awful system under Bylsma and the fact that he is putting up such great numbers under Gallant is proof of that. He's 33 years old or something. He didn't magically become this much better at this age.

Now obviously the system is a big part but the goalie himself has to have some skill, and that's what this thread is for. To celebrate MAF's talent and how everything has come together for him finally.

I could go on like this, but my therapist says I shouldn't keep clicking on those videos or else the night sweats will return

 

[CanadianPensFan1]

Fleury is indeed polarizing.

He certainly had some highs and lows in the pens uniform. The lows were reallllly low and the highs were pretty high.

I love the guy and didn't want him to go. But the pens found a younger goalie, who made less and was playing better. It sucks but it's sports and a business. I see why the move was made .. it was one guy or the other. I think the pens made the right choice but they doesn't mean I WANTED fleury gone.

I love seeing him succeed in Vegas and am super happy for him and his family and the fans of Vegas.

I said this before but .. I fully realize the small chance of this but to see a pens Vegas final would, for me, be unreal. Even seeing Vegas win and fleury hoisting the cup would make me smile ear to ear

 

[cookthebooks]

first ballot inductee into the hall of very good

 

[Lazlo Hollyfeld]

Fleury seems like a genuinely good guy and great teammate.

His career has been very similar to Chris Osgood's. Early gaffes overcome by playing on a loaded team. Late career resurgence. Still not HOF worthy to me. He's never been elite.

 

[Grimm]

The guy helped Pitt win multiple Stanley Cups. Just a brutal fan base who wants to cry and blame when they don't win the cup every year with him, Crosby, Malkin, Letang. Talk about focusing on the negative. Zero thanks or appreciation.

He had a few years of woes, and took it in stride. It happens. Crosby sucked balls in the finals in 09 and you never hear a peep about it, he can't do any wrong. You never win game 7 in 09 without him and you probably don't win again without him standing on his head when Murray was hurt.

I'm genuinely happy for the guy right now.

 

[jjp66]

The guy helped Pitt win multiple Stanley Cups. Just a brutal fan base who wants to cry and blame when they don't win the cup every year with him, Crosby, Malkin, Letang. Talk about focusing on the negative. Zero thanks or appreciation.

He had a few years of woes, and took it in stride. It happens. Crosby sucked balls in the finals in 09 and you never hear a peep about it, he can't do any wrong. You never win game 7 in 09 without him and you probably don't win again without him standing on his head when Murray was hurt.

I'm genuinely happy for the guy right now.

He's very much a fan favorite in Pittsburgh. You're taking it a bit too far with the hate talk. It's more frustration than anything from Pens fans. He'd play lights out for most of the regular season, then playoff time comes, and he had a tendency to give up softies and ill-timed goals.

 

[ncm7772]

If you wanna believe in false truths, that's your problem. I've never seen so much projecting in all my life.



He posted similar RS numbers under both Bylsma and Sullivan.

THEN in 2016 JR gets some depth in place and Sullivan brings in youth. But in 2016, it was 100% Murray. MAF lost the one game he was in. Then, under a tremendous amount of actual depth that the Pens didn't have in 2010-2015, he plays well.

You can argue system and that's valid. But to suggest that MAF's putrid play in several playoffs series was systemic or just the Pens fans blindly hating him...well that's just flat out wrong.



I mean jesus....



Good god...look up what happen in OT...

Google Game 7 MTL vs Pens...

Hell google ANY game from 2012.

I still have nightmares of those series.

 

[nbonaddio]

For funs and giggles, he's 2.39/.918 since 2010.

Two closest comparables are Rinne at 2.35/.919 and Lundqvist at 2.40/.920.

I would be relatively shocked if he doesn't end up 3rd in all-time wins behind Brodeur or Roy.

 

[Jaded-Fan]

Many Pens' fans predicted that he could, and would, have one of the best GAA in the league on a defensive oriented team once he left the Pens. If I cared to do it I could search back where I said just that at least a dozen times over the years.

 

[Old Gregg]

His game really started to turn around once he had an actual goalie coach...you know the thing the penguins didn't give him until 2014. That right there is how you develop a goalie.

Step 1) Draft one of the most athletic goalies in NHL history
Step 2) throw him in net. Send him to AHL because you can't afford any bonuses.
Step 3) Don't give him a goalie coach.
Step 4) Blame him when he sucks.

 

[Luigi Lemieux]

The guy helped Pitt win multiple Stanley Cups. Just a brutal fan base who wants to cry and blame when they don't win the cup every year with him, Crosby, Malkin, Letang. Talk about focusing on the negative. Zero thanks or appreciation.

He had a few years of woes, and took it in stride. It happens. Crosby sucked balls in the finals in 09 and you never hear a peep about it, he can't do any wrong. You never win game 7 in 09 without him and you probably don't win again without him standing on his head when Murray was hurt.

I'm genuinely happy for the guy right now.

God this is such nonsense. He had his share of critics on hf but pens fans were the only ones who actually did support him. Maybe too much considering some of his performances. He's still a fan favorite and many are still (wrongly) upset they kept Murray over Fleury.

 

[ImporterExporter]

Any Penguins fans here saying HFboards treated MAF with much respect is a load of crap (as I've seen posted here). He was the single most shit on player on the boards regardless of year. Yes, he absolutely blew ass in 2012 (so did the entire team if we're being truthful) and for stretches at other points in history. But he didn't deserve a lot of the hate he got IMO. It's one thing to call a guy out for poor play when justified but it's another thing entirely to harp on a guy to the point of obession and I largely stopped posting much on the Pens board for a while because I got sick and tired of most of the blame being put on MAF, when you had absolutely moronic coaching (Bylsma, Johnston), very suspect defensive play in front of him, suspect locker room issues, etc, etc. MAF was part of the problem but far from the only one from say 2010 through 2013.

I've met Fleury twice. By far the most respectful and "normal" star you could hope to meet. His work around Pittsburgh, off the ice, went unmatched by just about anyone not named Mario. He was the first building block in the Pittsburgh rebirth and was thrust into the NHL ranks very early, especially as a goalie.

People forget (we're living in the worst what have you done for me lately age ever) that he was masterful in the 2008 postseason (Cup loss). He was better than his numbers suggest in 2009 and seriously, what an effort in games 6 and 7 vs the mighty Red Wings with the iconic sprawling save vs Lidstrom with 2 seconds left to clinch the Cup. He was solid in 13-14. He was stellar the following year even in a 1st round exit. And the Penguins absolutely don't win the Cup last year without MAF coming up huge the first 2 series. Again, how about that dominant shutout performance vs Washington, on the road in game 7?

He never complained or moaned about losing his gig to a 22 year old, green, netminder. Matt Murray was the greatest thing that happened to MAF IMO. It relieved some of the pressue off him and it showed how great a teammate he truly was/is. Murray specifically talked, over and over about how much MAF coached him up and helped him adjust on the fly to the rigors of the game. They complimented one another perfectly. And then he wavied his no movement clause so the Pens could protect Murray (didn't have any obligation to do such a thing) and went to Vegas with a legitimate smile on his face and promptly put up a Vezina caliber season (not quite enough of a workload to win IMO) and has been insanely great through 3 games (3 wins) thus far.

I gave my share of critisism to MAF when he deserved it but always felt he was thrown to the wolves far to often around here. A lot of vile crap spewed about a guy who is legitimately one of the best guys in all of sports and had plenty of great moments for the Pens (and yes some cringe worthy ones as well). I'm thrilled he's doing well out in Vegas and will continue to root for the guy as long as he's not playing the Pens haha.

 

[ZeroPucksGiven]

MAF was part of the problem but far from the only one from say 2010 through 2013

Weird how Vokoun came in during the Isles series and stablized the net behind the EXACT same defense as 2 games prior...

 

[ImporterExporter]

Weird how Vokoun came in during the Isles series and stablized the net behind the EXACT same defense as 2 games prior...

You're talking about an incredibly small sample size. You can find a bad series or 2 from any goalie in the history of hockey (Roy and Hasek included). Yes MAF was bad. The team played more relaxed with Tommy V. No doubt about it.

 

[chethejet]

Is he a HOF goalie, Really he has all the stats but if this year hasn't changed your view of his talent, then you are blind to the fact he is a HOF goalie. You don't win that many games, cups and have the kind of success he has had without being an elite talent. I have seen King Henrik leave the ice due to the Pens beating him like a drum. I have seen BOB from Columbus choke like a dog vs the Pens. Yet they are considered superior to MAF.

 

[ImporterExporter]

Is he a HOF goalie, Really he has all the stats but if this year hasn't changed your view of his talent, then you are blind to the fact he is a HOF goalie. You don't win that many games, cups and have the kind of success he has had without being an elite talent. I have seen King Henrik leave the ice due to the Pens beating him like a drum. I have seen BOB from Columbus choke like a dog vs the Pens. Yet they are considered superior to MAF.

If he can stay healthy for the next 3-4 years, there's a strong chance he makes it to 500 wins, which is a hard number to ignore. Only Pat Roy and Marty B would have more all time. His detractors will point to his lack of individual hardware but he should be adding a top 5 Vezina finish to his resume this year IMO and while his postseason resume is a roller coaster he still was monumentally important to a pair of the Cups in Pittsburgh and was amazing even in the year they lost (2008).

Obviously there would seem to be a ways to go with his career. Depending on how well he and Vegas play the rest of the way he might be getting real close as early as this year. I don't think most people appreciate how amazing a year it's been for him and Vegas on the whole. An expansion team 1 win from sweeping a solid LA Kings roster with MAF allowing just 3 goals in 3 games.

As of right now, I say no, he's not in. But If i had to wager money when his career is finished, he'll be a HOF'er.

 

[ZeroPucksGiven]

You're talking about an incredibly small sample size. You can find a bad series or 2 from any goalie in the history of hockey (Roy and Hasek included). Yes MAF was bad. The team played more relaxed with Tommy V. No doubt about it.

Shall I expand the sample size to 2012 vs the Flyers (see the video above where he bobbles a puts a puck in himself)?

How about the shot from the blueline vs the Jackets in 2014?

Or maybe I can go back to 2008 where he puts the GWG of the Cup finally in off himself again?

Here's an adage that has helped me through life:

Once is an accident
Twice is a coincidence
Three times is friendly fire

We've got reams of film proving MAF was a playoff headcase prior to 2015. I mean he was under .900 Sv % for his playoff career that can't be chalked up to "sample size".

I'm not sure why people are making apologies for him and attempting to rewrite history here. Why can't it be "MAF sucked completely and then when called upon in 2016/2017 he turned in some really good playoff performances and seemingly erased the playoff choker label"?

We're not saying he was a terrible human being or we wished ill upon his family. He was trash and rightfully got called out for it. He then turned things around and rightfully got praised for it