Everywhere I go, be it NHL.com, Facebook, or Calgarypuck, I see the same people with the blame being laid on their shoulders. Namely, Miikka Kiprusoff and Jarome Iginla. Are they the issue? Can we blame our troubles so far this season, and in previous seasons, on them, and their age? To answer this question.. I've decided to do some research.
This season, Miikka Kiprusoff has the lowest of all the goaltenders in save percentage. He's 36th in GAA (out of 40). Miikka has clearly underplayed so far this season. Over the years, since he was traded to the Flames, Miikka has been our go-to goaltender and easily the best player on the Flames. He's had a slow start, however, our team is not contributing to his play. Our defense has been very sloppy. Oddly, we see players like Bouwmeester playing extremely well.. and players like Giordano not so much. Obviously something this team lacks is consistency, and Miikka is no exception. Kiprusoff is still an all-world, elite goaltender, around the league. Everyone knows that when he's playing a good game, nothing he can see will go past him. If he's aware of the puck, it will not get through him. Is the engine just taking a while to start, or is this actually the Miikka Kiprusoff that we will be counting on all season?
This is Miikka's Game Log so far this season: (Looking at this and following along will help you understand what im saying.. however it's not necessary because I somewhat explain it)
http://www.nhl.com/ice/player.htm?id...22013&view=log
It shows all of his games with the stats he accumulated in them. We see every game but just ONE with bad stats. Lets look back at last season. Obviously we see a much better start, but Kipper still didn't get to his top form until mid season, when posting a .950 svpctg was just another day in the life of Miikka. Let's look at the 09-10 season. We also see a great start, coupled with an entirely good season. Let's look at his Vezina winning year. We only see slightly better stats here. Below is a representation of Kippers stats throughout his Vezina year, and this year, in the first 6 games. The average stats really aren't that much different. The stats only have a .035 difference. Kipper obviously took more shots in 05, but he also let in the same amount of goals. This also shows that in that season they only had 1 more point than we do now in the first 6, even though we're in a bigger rush now it shows we can still pull through
Oct 15 '05 EDM @ CGY W 0 33 33 1.000 1 0 59:54 0 0 0 0
Oct 13 '05 DAL @ CGY O 3 22 19 .864 0 0 64:01 1 2 0 0
Oct 10 '05 CGY @ COL L 7 41 34 .829 0 0 59:54 4 3 0 0
Oct 9 '05 CGY @ DET L 5 36 31 .861 0 0 40:00 1 4 0 0
Oct 7 '05 CGY @ CBJ W 1 20 19 .950 0 0 60:00 0 1 0 0
Oct 5 '05 CGY @ MIN L 5 27 22 .815 0 0 58:45 3 2 0 1
Average .886
Feb 2 '13 CHI @ CGY O 2 19 17 .895 0 0 65:00 2 0 0 0
Jan 31 '13 COL @ CGY L 5 21 16 .762 0 0 59:44 4 1 0 1
Jan 26 '13 EDM @ CGY W 3 20 17 .850 0 0 59:39 1 2 0 0
Jan 23 '13 CGY @ VAN O 2 36 34 .944 0 0 64:59 1 1 0 0
Jan 21 '13 ANA @ CGY L 5 24 19 .792 0 0 59:08 5 0 0 0
Jan 20 '13 SJS @ CGY L 4 29 25 .862 0 0 59:56 2 2 0 0
Average .851
Only one game over .9 save percentage in the first 6 games, and a shutout. Obviously these stats are better, but not by a landslide. And he was named the league's best goaltender. The year after that, he posted very similar stats to the previous season in the first six games. He came out with a .917 svpctg, which is still fairly good. Last season was just one of a handful of fantastic seasons for Miikka. So is age actually catching up to him? Are we stuck with a merely average goaltender until we find a replacement?
My answer is a resounding NO. We're worrying over a slow start. He can pull through, doubting Kiprusoff is the stupidest thing anyone in the NHL can do. We as Flames fans should know that the best. No, he is not the issue. That does not mean we don't need to worry about goaltending, because he's sure to retire soon. Maybe not though, we never know with him.
Jarome Iginla's slow starts have been an issue with this franchise. At the beginning of every year, the word is, Iggy's gotta go! At the end of the year, it's usually a pretty different desire from the fans. He starts slow, he heats up, and does pretty damn well as a captain and a forward for this franchise after his first 10 or so games. However, 10 games is a fifth of this season. Should we keep him? Should he go? Well, the answer's simple.
Iginla has a bumpy record in points. He's gone over and under the 70 point mark many times. In the 01 season, Iginla put up a mere 71 points. He was not expected to become one of the leagues best players. Come 02, he blew the gates off of the NHL with 96 points. He slowed down again, and score 3 seasons of 67 points, 73 points, and again, 67. 67 is a KEY number here, as that is the same amount he put up last season. After this, PEW PEW, 3 seasons, recording 94, 98, and 89 points. Another slow season for Iginla, after these 3 great seasons, with 69 points. Then he comes again, with 86 points. That brings us to last season, with 67 points. Does ONE bad season mean the end for Iginla? NO!
Thinking otherwise is absurd! He's still one of the most fit players in the league. Sure, he's getting up in age, but if you're fit, and love the game, age isn't a problem until you really start to get up there. See Teemu Selanne. He had a slow season with the Avs with only 32 points. Come being in a Ducks uniform, he puts up 2 seasons, getting 90 plus points, being 34-35 years old! Iginla should be no exception. Give him a few more seasons, I bet in at least one he hits the 80 point mark again. Maybe more.
The answer, once again, is NO.
The point in all this is that Iginla and Kiprusoff are not our problem, people saying we need to trade them to begin a rebuild, they are our core, they are a skilled core, even though they are old. This season, Iginla really hasn't been bad. He's worked hard, and goalies are lucky he hasn't scored yet. Kiprusoff has only playing one or two bad games. They can both bounce back. They both will bounce back. Jumping to conclusions this fast is ridiculous.