Was Fleury worth the 1st overall selection?

[MrSnrub]

I don't think he's ever been in the conversation for top goalies in the league but most would agree he's still a quality goaltender. Has some very impressive playoff performances on his resume especially taking Vegas to the Finals last season. I guess I'm asking just how good does a goaltender need to be in order to justify being selected 1st overall? Did he live up to expectations or not?

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[hotcabbagesoup]

Sharks fan here.

Fleury broke my heart when he was a Pen and when he was a Knight in the playoffs.

How can you be so heartless, how can you be so heartless.

 

[SI90]

That was a great 1st round draft. In hindsight it worked out because the Pens ended up with Malkin and Crosby the next 2 drafts.

I don’t believe in taking goalies in the first round but it was a lot more popular years ago. I’d say Fleury has had a terrific career and was definitely worthy of his selection.

 

[ijuka]

In this draft? Not at all.

In general, spending a 1st rounder - especially an early one - on a goalie is a waste of a pick.

 

[zombie kopitar]

Well it's always been a polarizing pick due to the nature of the draft being so deep and producing so many all stars.

That being said, he is currently the 2nd best player in that draft right now after my boy sasquatch. Longevity is in his favor.

But the answer is yes, his playoff results speak for themselves....even if he's never been a true vezina/all nhl goalie.

 

[amnesiac]

no, I think he wouldve needed a Vezina or 2 to justify it, as 2003 draft class was too strong.

Bergeron takes the cake for #1

 

[MikeyMike01]

He went 8th in a redraft, which I think is still too high.

2003 Redraft #8

 

[DearDiary]

Fluery had the potential to be an all time great, problem was that the Pens made no effort in developing him. He didn't even get a proper goalie coach until he was 29-30 iirc.

So you have a young talented goalie that you throw right away into a rebuilding team and expect high results, whose play stayed stagnant with no improvement in his technique or positioning due to no help in that aspect. When you couple that with his self admitted mental issues that continued to climb as a result of those 2 things, it's a surprise that Fluery didn't completely bust.

 

[StreetHawk]

That was an era when goalies were going high. Dipietro went 1st in 2000. Blackburn and Leclaire went top 10 in 2001.

He’s been a good selection. Top of that draft were E Staal, Horton.

You wouldn’t take a goalie that high anymore. I doubt Knight goes top 20 this year.

 

[hotcabbagesoup]

Well it's always been a polarizing pick due to the nature of the draft being so deep and producing so many all stars.

That being said, he is currently the 2nd best player in that draft right now after my boy sasquatch. Longevity is in his favor.

But the answer is yes, his playoff results speak for themselves....even if he's never been a true vezina/all nhl goalie.

Oh you right. Best pick of that draft was...our boy sasquatch.

 

[SomeDude]

If you look at overall career (so far) is he the most valuable player out of the 2003 draft? No, but he was the right pick for the Pens and it worked out perfectly. I think people forget just how phenomenal he was in 2003-04. Regularly getting hammered with 40+ shots as an 18 year old and losing a lot of 3-1 games. Pens jerked him around a ton in his early career, but he turned out fine.

 

[SI90]

That was an era when goalies were going high. Dipietro went 1st in 2000. Blackburn and Leclaire went top 10 in 2001.

He’s been a good selection. Top of that draft were E Staal, Horton.

You wouldn’t take a goalie that high anymore. I doubt Knight goes top 20 this year.

Lehtonen #2 over too

 

[Matty Sundin]

I believe most teams had Eric Staal or Horton going 1st but Penguins wanted him so bad and traded up just to make sure they'd get him.

 

[Regal]

He wouldn't go number 1 in a redraft, but I don't think the Pens are complaining.

 

[Soundgarden]

I think he was most definitely worth the 1st overall selection. Is he the best player in his draft class? I don't think so, but that's a completely different question in my opinion.

 

[3074326]

Wasn't the best player in that draft class, but I'm pretty happy with how things turned out. Too bad the Pens org did him no favors at all when he was young. Didn't even have a goalie coach for most of his career.

 

[zombie kopitar]

Oh you right. Best pick of that draft was...our boy sasquatch.

I guess you have to include Bergeron in the top 3 players right now...though he was a 2nd rounder so a little different circumstance imo.
And there are so many Stanley Cup champions and all stars on the list we can still argue for days what were the 'better' picks.

But if you would have done a poll 5 years ago and said they would be the 3 best players from that draft in 2019 there would be people talking mad **** to you, especially because people were meaner back then

 

[Golden Puppers]

yes

its really easy to say he wasnt the best player in 2003 draft and that is true but you can't evaulate in hindsight like that. he's a borderline HoFer and still a really good player.

 

[McRpro]

In hindsight it was a bad move. But at the time it wasn't.

 

[Incognito]

It was Fleury's pure raw potential at the time that led to him going #1 overall. His potential was completely off the charts. He is probably one of the most naturally talented goaltenders to ever live, and if his development had truly been handled properly from the get-go, he'd likely be regarded as one of the greatest of all time today. Though he still turned into a really solid goalie eventually, he's definitely still a huge "what-could-have-been" in my view.

 

[Knave]

It worked out for the Penguins because he was good enough to win a cup in front of. Is he the best player from the draft? No. But he's far from a bust and had some great moments and was good enough to be a legitimate #1 for a significant period of time.

They could have drafted someone like Rick DiPietro or Nail Yakupov. There are players who turned out worse for their teams.

 

[Smartguy]

I can’t believe what I’m reading in here, do you know how rare it is to have a goalie who plays at a high level as long as fluery has?
Very. I’d say him, Price, Lundqvist, Rinne to a degree are some of the only few to perform for long periods of time. As an Oiler fan, who’s team has spent over a decade looking for a decent goalie, I’d gladly take fluery at number 1. Hindsight shows us yes some players in that draft are obviously superstars, but getting a good consistent goalie is so hard, and he has a couple years left in him.

 

[Russian_fanatic]

That was a great 1st round draft. In hindsight it worked out because the Pens ended up with Malkin and Crosby the next 2 drafts.

I don’t believe in taking goalies in the first round but it was a lot more popular years ago. I’d say Fleury has had a terrific career and was definitely worthy of his selection.

That wasn’t always the case though. I’d say it’s only been the last 10 years that goalies have seen their value drop in drafts. In the early 2000s teams where trying their hardest to find the next Hasek, Roy, and Brodeur.

Having a franchise goaltender was like having a franchise center today. Imagine of the Naslund/Bertuzzi Canucks had even a decent goaltender. Times change.

 

[Russian_fanatic]

It was Fleury's pure raw potential at the time that led to him going #1 overall. His potential was completely off the charts. He is probably one of the most naturally talented goaltenders to ever live, and if his development had truly been handled properly from the get-go, he'd likely be regarded as one of the greatest of all time today. Though he still turned into a really solid goalie eventually, he's definitely still a huge "what-could-have-been" in my view.

Agree 100%. Young Fleury was an athletic freak. Probably the most athletic goalie, and quickest reflexes I’ve ever seen. Plus he had the size to be something special. The Penguins where so horribly run back then I can’t even blame Fleury. Pens really got lucky landing Crosby, and Malkin.

 

[RedMenace]

Yes.

I hate the Penguins more than most people, but regardless of his playoff gaffes, I would still have him backstop my team.

I like him infinitely more now that he's not with the Pens.

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