Will Niittymaki be considered the real deal?

[chthonic]

If niitty continues to do well, will he finally be considered better than lehtonen (he also outplayed lehtonen in the calder cup finals last year)? maybe closer in status to kipper? or will people just assume lethonen and kipprusoff would have done better if they played, and niitty only played because they were hurt.

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[007]

He didn't really have too much to do today, though he acquitted himself as well as he had to. Let's wait until we get a bit further into the tournament before we call him better than Lehtonen or Toivonen. It still worries me how far back in the net he sometimes plays, considering he's not the biggest goalie around.

Still, I'm pulling for him!

 

[GKJ]

I know people were just predicting the Swiss would score just because Niitty isn't good enough to shut them out. Wrong.

 

[chthonic]

He didn't really have too much to do today, though he acquitted himself as well as he had to. Let's wait until we get a bit further into the tournament before we call him better than Lehtonen or Toivonen. It still worries me how far back in the net he sometimes plays, considering he's not the biggest goalie around.

Still, I'm pulling for him!

but im saying, say he has a really good if not spectacular run. would people take him seriously then? i feel like hes really unheralded outside of philadelphia

 

[roccol]

Nitty is the next Roman Chechmanik

 

[chthonic]

i dont like that one bit.
but seriously though i really dont see the similarities.
cechmanek was a great goalie, but a total headcase and not a teamplayer. niittymaki is quiet and a teamplayer. i dont see that happening again.

 

[veronesepk]

Do you guys think he will replace Esche as the full time starter in Philly? It just seems like his talent is squandered if they use him as a backup.

 

[Vman]

Nitty is the next Kipper

 

[Wranglers110]

Philadelphia has a curse of churning out excellent flash in the pan goalies.


Cechmanek, Boucher, Esche......

 

[Joe MacMillan]

Philadelphia has a curse of churning out excellent flash in the pan goalies.


Cechmanek, Boucher, Esche......

But none of them are Finns.

 

[Rez]

I see Niittymaki as a #1 goaltender, but not in the same class as guys like Lehtonen, Toivonen, Lundqvist, Miller, or Fleury.

 

[mattihp]

As mentioned, for Niittymäki to be good enough to be a star goalie, he needs to stop thinking he can play butterfly and take a solid stand up role. He has the skill and heart to do the convertion...

 

[jekoh]

Nitty is the next Roman Chechmanik

I'm not sure he's a Vezina trophy candidate.

 

[GKJ]

But none of them are Finns.

and none of them had real resounding success in another league before coming here

 

[mattihp]

and none of them had real resounding success in another league before coming here

Wasn't Chokey a superstar tender before he came over?

 

[Pantokrator]

Nitty has aquitted himself well in the NHL, but he has had more pro level experience than Lehtonen. I'd wait about 3 years before making a comparison between these two. Plus, Nitty plays for a better defensive team too, which helps him out.

 

[Jaysus]

Did Nittymaki wear his Flyers mask yesterday, or did he wear one painted with a Finnish theme?

 

[Joe MacMillan]

Did Nittymaki wear his Flyers mask yesterday, or did he wear one painted with a Finnish theme?

Flyers mask.

 

[Jaysus]

Thank you.

 

[Synthetic]

I thought he had another SO today until I realized the goalies had been rotated.

Not that he couldn't have done the same thing himself, though.

Yay for Niitty.

Yay for Philly, only team with two goalies in the Olympics.

Whoo for me! I'm a massive homer.

 

[Jaysus]

Yay for Philly, only team with two goalies in the Olympics.

Slightly ironic, that if not for the two injuries that lead to Nitty making the team in the first place, two other teams could have had two goalies *selected* to the olympics - Atl, Cgy (even though Boudaj has since been traded).

 

[Raimo Sillanpää]

Doesn't Colorado have two with Aebischer and Budaj?

 

[Panopticon]

Doesn't Colorado have two with Aebischer and Budaj?

Yes, they do.

 

[Jaysus]

wasn't Budaj traded to Calgary, then Phoenix?

EDIT: Sorry, I got my former Hershey Bears (AHL) goalies confused - I was thinking Philippe Sauve.

 

[Michael Morbid]

Colorado doesn't have two goalies in the Olympics, they have THREE. Their #3 guy is Vitaly Kolesnik the 'tender for Kazakhstan.