[tvp2003]

Great article. I enjoyed this piece:

The problem with the butterfly is that it’s become, for many young goaltenders, an entire style rather than a single movement in the goaltender’s arsenal. The main difference between a goalie who relies on the butterfly and one who stands up or plays what some call a hybrid style has to do with the second and third scoring chances that follow from an unsuccessful first attempt. If the only hockey you watch is ESPN highlights, you might think that every goal is the product of tic-tac-toe passing plays or high-velocity shots “sniped” from afar. However, it’s rare for an NHL goalie to be cleanly scored on. Often, goals are scored off rebounds. The goalie blocks the first shot back out onto the ice. Ten players slap at it around the crease; sometimes the goalie can only sense where the puck might be rather than actually see it. The butterfly is a kind of algorithm that maximizes your total physical size so you can take up as much of the net as possible, to stop second and third chances and allow your defensemen to clear the puck away. A hallmark of Finnish goaltending, by contrast, is that there is no second chance. The first shot is caught in the glove or redirected at an angle, far away from the crease.