Their place on the Canadian Olympic team was secured five weeks ago, but the final two weeks before the men's hockey tournament commences in Vancouver will be an important timeframe for Martin Brodeur, Marc-Andre Fleury and Roberto Luongo.
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Brodeur's place as Canada's No. 1 isn't a given
- February 3, 2010 2:21 PM |
- By Tim Wharnsby
Their place on the Canadian Olympic team was secured five weeks ago, but the final two weeks before the men's hockey tournament commences in Vancouver will be an important timeframe for Martin Brodeur, Marc-Andre Fleury and Roberto Luongo.
Head coach Mike Babcock and his staff has not decided on their No.1 goalie for the Vancouver Games. The decision won't be made until the Canadian Olympic team coaching staff gathers in Vancouver on Feb. 14, or the following day when Canada practises for the only time before its tournament opener against Norway on Feb. 16.
Babcock and his assistants Ken Hitchcock, Jacques Lemaire and Lindy Ruff, don't play on the final day before the break.
Hitchcock, in particular, will have more time to concentrate on Team Canada after he was relieved of his head coaching duties by the Columbus Blue Jackets on Wednesday.
Maybe Hitchcock getting fired a couple weeks prior to the Olympics will be a good omen for Canada. When he was relieved of his coaching duties with the Dallas Stars on Jan. 25, 2002, he helped Pat Quinn's staff lead Canada to an Olympic gold medal in Salt Lake City a few weeks later.
Most will be surprised if the 37-year-old Brodeur is not the go-to goalie. After all, he is the NHL's all-time victory king and shutouts leader. But his place as No. 1 isn't a given.
Yes, he won gold in 2002, his third Stanley Cup in 2003 and the World Cup of Hockey in 2004. But the fact that Brodeur and his New Jersey Devils have won only two playoff series since the 2004-05 lockout is a concern.
The 30-year-old Luongo also has celebrated only two playoff series victories since the lockout and since he backstopped Canada to back-to-back world championships in 2003 and 2004.
Fleury, 25, has had the most success recently. He has gone to two successive Stanley Cup finals and came out on top last spring. Now, there could be an case made that Fleury has played for the better team in Pittsburgh than Vancouver and New Jersey in the past four-plus seasons.
Fleury's statistics don't stack up with Luongo and Brodeur, although he has won four of his past five outings.
Nevertheless, there is no clear cut favourite to land the prized Canadian goaltending gig at this point. It could be the most important decision the coaching staff makes because in a short tournament, the netminding has to be spot on. See Dominik Hasek in 1998, Brodeur in 2002 and Henrik Lundqvist in 2006.
Once Babcock settles on his No. 1 to start the tournament, he then must formulate a game plan on which goalie sees action in the first three games against Norway, Switzerland and the United States.
There are three options:
1. The No. 1 gets the crease for all three contests. There are off days before the first three games, so you may as well allow the starter to get in an early grove. If Brodeur is the man, you may want him to play all three games to allow the Canadian defencemen to develop chemistry with him because he plays the puck so much.
2. Have the No. 1 start against Norway in the tournament opener and again against the United States. This allows the backup to see some action in the second game, so he isn't stone cold if he is needed later in the tournament.
3. Have the backup start the tournament opener, so the No. 1 can play against Switzerland in the second game. Why do you want No. 1 in against Switzerland? Because the Swiss will provide a much better opponent and will produce more action than Norway. This will better prepare the No. 1 for the important match against the U.S.
But before Babcock decides on which option he will employ, he hopes that one of Brodeur, Fleury or Luongo gets on a roll and stays hot in Vancouver.
Looking up
The Canadian goalie trio doesn't sport the highest save percentage like the United States' Ryan Miller (.932) or Czech Republic's Tomas Vokoun (.931) or the lowest goals against average like Miller's 2.10. Here's how Martin Brodeur, Marc-Andre Fleury and Roberto Luongo stack up in the NHL this season.
Head coach Mike Babcock and his staff has not decided on their No.1 goalie for the Vancouver Games. The decision won't be made until the Canadian Olympic team coaching staff gathers in Vancouver on Feb. 14, or the following day when Canada practises for the only time before its tournament opener against Norway on Feb. 16.
Babcock and his assistants Ken Hitchcock, Jacques Lemaire and Lindy Ruff, don't play on the final day before the break.
Hitchcock, in particular, will have more time to concentrate on Team Canada after he was relieved of his head coaching duties by the Columbus Blue Jackets on Wednesday.
Maybe Hitchcock getting fired a couple weeks prior to the Olympics will be a good omen for Canada. When he was relieved of his coaching duties with the Dallas Stars on Jan. 25, 2002, he helped Pat Quinn's staff lead Canada to an Olympic gold medal in Salt Lake City a few weeks later.
Most will be surprised if the 37-year-old Brodeur is not the go-to goalie. After all, he is the NHL's all-time victory king and shutouts leader. But his place as No. 1 isn't a given.
Yes, he won gold in 2002, his third Stanley Cup in 2003 and the World Cup of Hockey in 2004. But the fact that Brodeur and his New Jersey Devils have won only two playoff series since the 2004-05 lockout is a concern.
The 30-year-old Luongo also has celebrated only two playoff series victories since the lockout and since he backstopped Canada to back-to-back world championships in 2003 and 2004.
Fleury, 25, has had the most success recently. He has gone to two successive Stanley Cup finals and came out on top last spring. Now, there could be an case made that Fleury has played for the better team in Pittsburgh than Vancouver and New Jersey in the past four-plus seasons.
Fleury's statistics don't stack up with Luongo and Brodeur, although he has won four of his past five outings.
Nevertheless, there is no clear cut favourite to land the prized Canadian goaltending gig at this point. It could be the most important decision the coaching staff makes because in a short tournament, the netminding has to be spot on. See Dominik Hasek in 1998, Brodeur in 2002 and Henrik Lundqvist in 2006.
Once Babcock settles on his No. 1 to start the tournament, he then must formulate a game plan on which goalie sees action in the first three games against Norway, Switzerland and the United States.
There are three options:
1. The No. 1 gets the crease for all three contests. There are off days before the first three games, so you may as well allow the starter to get in an early grove. If Brodeur is the man, you may want him to play all three games to allow the Canadian defencemen to develop chemistry with him because he plays the puck so much.
2. Have the No. 1 start against Norway in the tournament opener and again against the United States. This allows the backup to see some action in the second game, so he isn't stone cold if he is needed later in the tournament.
3. Have the backup start the tournament opener, so the No. 1 can play against Switzerland in the second game. Why do you want No. 1 in against Switzerland? Because the Swiss will provide a much better opponent and will produce more action than Norway. This will better prepare the No. 1 for the important match against the U.S.
But before Babcock decides on which option he will employ, he hopes that one of Brodeur, Fleury or Luongo gets on a roll and stays hot in Vancouver.
Looking up
The Canadian goalie trio doesn't sport the highest save percentage like the United States' Ryan Miller (.932) or Czech Republic's Tomas Vokoun (.931) or the lowest goals against average like Miller's 2.10. Here's how Martin Brodeur, Marc-Andre Fleury and Roberto Luongo stack up in the NHL this season.
| Goalie | Wins | Save % | GAA |
| Martin Brodeur | 32 (T1st) | .919 (T11th) | 2.22 (4th) |
| Roberto Luongo | 28 (7th) | .919 (T11th) | 2.33 (T 10th) |
| Marc-Andre Fleury | 29 (T5th) | .908 (27th) | 2.59 (21st) |
About the Author
- Tim Wharnsby Tim Wharnsby is a reporter, plain and simple. He's worked the sports beat at The Globe and Mail and the Toronto Sun, specializing in Canada's one true sporting obsession - hockey. He knows the players, the coaches, the backroom boys and most importantly, the fans. That's what he brings to his stories. Knowledge, fairness and understanding are trademarks of a Wharnsby story. That's what you will get here as he writes for CBCSports.ca.
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