Sharks' Goalie Rotation

Back-to-back shutouts bring no guarantees

David Pollack's article, in today's Mercury News, takes a look at Coach Ron Wilson's current goalie situation. Even though Evgeni Nabokov has posted over 126 minutes of shutout hockey, it does not mean that he is the new official starting goalie...nor should it. Granted, Nabby has been hot lately, but he is still only 4-5-1 in his last 10 games. Even Nabokov himself said, "It's only been a few games or whatever...let's not rush to make any conclusions."

However, there were a few blurbs in Pollack's article that make me think Nabby is a bit unhappy with the rotating schedule:

"The biggest problem is you play the game, then you have two days off. Then the other guy plays, then you have another day off, then you have another game...so you have four days without playing."

In response to Nabokov's wishes to play more, Coach Ron Wilson replied:

"If Nabby wants to say he should play every game because he plays better; I could say the same thing about Tosk. It doesn't matter...the job of the goalie is to be mentally prepared to play, not say 'I have to play every game and then I can play well.'"

Coach Wilson has made it clear all year long that the Sharks have two starting goalies. "To me, it's like pulling a name out of a hat...that's the way we feel about them. It's that simple. We've got two great goalies and I don't think it affects us either way, in any way."

Is this accurate? Both goalies have nearly identical stats, but Toskala has clearly received more offensive support than Nabokov. Do the Sharks gamble offensively for Tosk because they trust him more than Nabby? Or is it a simple luck of the draw every night and Nabby's just been receiving the short end of the stick? In the past, I have been known to hang back and protect the net more (as a center) when I thought our goalie was running cold; it only makes sense to play more defensively when the situation calls for it.

With that said, is there a correlation between Nabokov's improved play and the Sharks' improved scoring in front of him? More importantly, is there truth in what Nabby says...that goalies play better with more minutes under their belts?

At any rate, I see both the pros and cons to having one starter versus two; however, I think Coach Wilson is right. It may be tough to play well when you feel that you're not getting the ice time you think you need, but the bottom line is: if you're an NHL goalie, you have to be a professional and succeed in any scenario your club puts you in.

Given Coach Wilson's response to the whole situation, we can expect to see Toskala in the lineup as soon as his groin is 100 percent...even if Nabby is red hot.

A San Jose Sharks Blog