Killion
Registered User
- Feb 19, 2010
- 36,763
- 3,215
A goalie's job is to prevent goals, whether by stopping a shot or by preventing the shot from occurring.
It is also true that a goal is an objective fact (yes, subject to subjective rules, blah blah), but what constitutes a "shot" is highly subjective and consistently varies from scorekeeper to scorekeeper.
The ideal measure would be GAA, normalized by quality of team defense, but of course, normalizing for team defense is basically impossible. So we use Save % as a crutch, but don't pretend that save % accounts for everything that a goalie does to affect GAA.
Ya, these are all solid points. Whats not included as you point out scoring opportunities or shots that are negated as a result of something the Goaltender did in any given situation.... Guys like Plante, Giacomin, Brodeur & others, "Wanderers" who would play the puck themselves well outside of the crease for example... or perhaps diving on a loose puck before an opposing forward can take a shot. During the Stand-up Era, if you were playing the angles properly you'd force a lot of players to shoot wide as youd be well out of the paint leaving them nothing, continuing to move towards them as they advanced towards you & the net. They had 3 choices on a Breakaway or shot from the point or slot; 1) Shoot it directly at you; 2) Shoot it thinking they could beat you glove or stick side, maybe 5 hole but nope, not if you knew your angles & it would just sail wide or; 3) Go for a Deke but that problematical (time & space) as it was easy for the Goalie to read based on how the guy was holding his stick (on the forehand) and how he was cradling the puck. I was taught/told that even though the shots werent counted when you forced them wide, in your own head & for those in the know it did in fact "count" as in forcing shooters to shoot wide? You were doing your job. Counted where it mattered if not always on the stats sheets.