Your Expectations of Giguere after 2003

[Paul4587]

Giguere was an excellent goalie until the end of the 2007-08 season. Top 5 in the league over the span of 2001-2008. The 2008-09 season was rough for him - his father passed away, he started having chronic hip and groin issues and he never regained form as a starter but was a decent backup the rest of his career.

 

[quoipourquoi]

Giguere was an excellent goalie until the end of the 2007-08 season. Top 5 in the league over the span of 2001-2008. The 2008-09 season was rough for him - his father passed away, he started having chronic hip and groin issues and he never regained form as a starter but was a decent backup the rest of his career.

I might even go top-3 with Martin Brodeur and Roberto Luongo. Sports Illustrated had Jean-Sebastien Giguere on their 2000-2009 2nd Team All-Stars, so he was very highly regarded.

 

[mrhockey193195]

Not to be dismissive, but Giguere's run in 2003 was the first time it hit me that goaltending had changed forever. He looked like the Michelin Man, and his highlight reel saves were a far cry from the athleticism of Hasek, Richter, CuJo, etc.

That being said, I expected him to be a consistent Vezina contender for the next decade. He wasn't too far off for about five seasons, but I didn't expect him to drop off as quickly as he did.

 

[kaiser matias]

Reading comprehension, bucko. Neither qualifies, because neither won just one Cup as a starter on a separate occasion.

Indeed, I only read the Smythe on the losing side part.

 

[vikash1987]

Before the 2003 playoffs rolled around, I had been pronouncing his name (I’m embarrassed to admit this) “GEE-zhair” rather than “zhi-GAIR.” I guess I just never bothered to pay attention to Anaheim’s goalie. Fortunately for me, I brushed up on my French/Quebecois names, and soon enough, “Jiggy” became an overnight phenomenon and a household name. His playoff debut against Detroit was unbelievable: before that game, few folks mentioned his name at a national level; after that game, practically everyone in the hockey world knew his name.

I never believed, deep down, that he would become a perennial Vezina contender after 2003. I don’t know why, but I just never had that serious expectation. All in all, he had tremendously solid few years after 2003.

 

[JianYang]

Yes, the equipment.

Also, I don't like that he drinks through a straw...but I found out later that was a medicinal need of some sort...but it did bother me at the time haha

Yeah, he needed a straw to avoid air bubbles in his water. I can't remember his condition exactly but the air bubbles would cause him issues.

His equipment didn't bother me too much. Alot of goalies used massive equipment, and he was just one of many.

If you want to look at something extrodinary, take a look at what Garth snow used to wear on his shoulders.

 

[Nerowoy nora tolad]

His equipment didn't bother me too much. Alot of goalies used massive equipment, and he was just one of many.

Pulling up some shots of Giguere from 2003 to get a sense of how ridiculous his pads really were

One of the photos that I think gets referenced a lot is this one:

Where he does look enormous, but that might just be a cherry picked angle.

Another shot makes him look far more reasonable:

But most angles still show him as inflated by equipment to some degree:

Some of this is just the 12" pre lockout pad width compared to 11" standard now. The chestie is undoubtedly giving him a lot of area when the line of his shoulders is level with his eyes. Even though his head is projecting forward a bit in his stance, theres no way thats natural unless hes a hunchback. The blocker and trapper dont appear that ridiculous by pre lockout standards, when you compare it to monstrosities like this

and this

(hey we couldnt have a thread complaining about goalie equipment sizing without picking on Snow at least once)

But really none of Gigueres setup is all that bad when compared to modern goalies going with +3 and +4 thigh rises:

Look at where Bishops knees are in the pad compared to Giguere, its not even close. When he drops down into the butterfly, there is no five hole anymore. That matters a hell of a lot more than losing 20-30% on glove area, or an inch of rise from the shoulder floaters.

 

[hitman9172]

Unrelated to the discussion, but man, those are some beautiful jerseys. Can't believe the Ducks went away from those.

Other than the '03 playoff run, my favourite memory of Giguere is when Selanne grabbed Giguere, who was now on Colorado, after what would be both of their final regular season games in Anaheim and they did a farewell lap together. Starting at 2:25 of this video:

 

[Michael Farkas]

Not to excuse, but thigh risers come into play with other factors...your ability to quickly drop into the butterfly, seal the ice, and maintain proper stick discipline. In their natural state, they overlap already existing equipment and are of no disadvantage to the shooter.

The same cannot be said for a chest protectors that go to your ears or gloves that are designed to be another blocker.

That's why almost a quarter of all shootout goals are scored five hole. The thigh risers are only useful if they can be engaged. The quickness of shooters and the goalie's need to move/shuffle negates a good deal of the advantage of thigh risers. No such negation (or at least not close to that level) exists for chest/glove "extensions" (for parallel terminology)...

 

[quoipourquoi]

Count me among those who think thigh rise pads are THE WORST. Fashionably, they’re ugly blocks and make it look like you were drawn by a 3-year-old. Everyone should get 30” pads with rounded edges.

6-4? You get 30s.
5-2? You get 30s.

 

[Doctor No]

6-4? You get 30s.
5-2? You get 30s.

Co-signing on this, partly because I'm comfortably in the middle of that height range, but mainly so that we can see more photos like this.

 

[vadim sharifijanov]

i gotta say those shoulder pads looked pretty massive on the desbiens and cavallini last night

 

[LeafsNation75]

Im a little biased because one of only two NHL games Ive seen live was... um, not his best:



I think the general consensus here is right, he was a good NHL starter, but not as perfectly rounded as most goalie prospects are now, which is reasonable given how long ago his development was.

I went to Giguere's debut with the Maple Leafs after the trade from Anaheim when he got a shutout and became the 2nd Goalie in Leafs history to do that in his debut with them.

 

[Big Phil]

After 2003 I figured he'd be one of the goalies for Canada at the 2004 World Cup. 2003 was definitely his breakout moment. But then a bad year in 2004 changed that. You hate to say this, but the equipment was a factor, I thought. There just wasn't anything explosive about Giguere. How many of us can remember athletic saves from him and moments where he wowed you or robbed a player blind? We see this even with goalies like Theodore from the same era. Giguere was a goalie that I thought "blocked" a lot of shots rather than anything else.

 

[quoipourquoi]

How many of us can remember athletic saves from him and moments where he wowed you or robbed a player blind? We see this even with goalies like Theodore from the same era. Giguere was a goalie that I thought "blocked" a lot of shots rather than anything else.

Probably most of us, since he was a national news story in America for like six weeks.





The re-telling of his career as a player who didn’t rob shooters is...weird. For one, these aren’t exactly obscure highlights. Two, because having to make specifically athletic saves as a butterfly goaltender is typically a sign that you messed up. There isn’t exactly a chapter in the book for diving cross-crease with an open glove; as long as you were square to the puck and didn’t come too far out, you shouldn’t be making lateral movements that look showy.

Those videos above that made the rounds and landed Giguere on Jay Leno? Great saves that wouldn’t have looked nearly as impressive had he not strayed from his crease. Wouldn’t the fact that you remember him not for his athleticism but rather for blocking shots be a sign that he screwed up less frequently than many goaltenders?

Indiana Jones can have a great athletic fight scene with a whip, but the most effective thing might also be the one that requires the least energy. Giguere is the goaltending equivalent of just shooting a guy.

 

[Big Phil]

Probably most of us, since he was a national news story in America for like six weeks.





The re-telling of his career as a player who didn’t rob shooters is...weird. For one, these aren’t exactly obscure highlights. Two, because having to make specifically athletic saves as a butterfly goaltender is typically a sign that you messed up. There isn’t exactly a chapter in the book for diving cross-crease with an open glove; as long as you were square to the puck and didn’t come too far out, you shouldn’t be making lateral movements that look showy.

Those videos above that made the rounds and landed Giguere on Jay Leno? Great saves that wouldn’t have looked nearly as impressive had he not strayed from his crease. Wouldn’t the fact that you remember him not for his athleticism but rather for blocking shots be a sign that he screwed up less frequently than many goaltenders?

Indiana Jones can have a great athletic fight scene with a whip, but the most effective thing might also be the one that requires the least energy. Giguere is the goaltending equivalent of just shooting a guy.

I don't think so, even the best goalies made incredible saves. Brodeur made a ton of good saves too. He was often in position, Roy too. Look at Hasek, made incredible save after save that broke the highlight reel. Even the most positionally sound goalies had to scramble to make a big save. Anyway, I do remember that save now, but I guess it shows you how easy it is to forget it because Giguere was more or less a forgettable goalie style-wise.