Quote:
Originally Posted by CSharp
Hiller reminds me too much of McElhinney when he was backuping Kipper. Except Hiller is down on his knees and stays down on that butterfly position for most of the plays in front of him. His lateral movements are slow, although it has improved in the last few games. The Flames goalie coach has probably worked continuously on his lateral movements so that he's not side-stepping with his big pads when he's in that butterfly position. The way Hiller sits close to the crease a lot of times without moving out to challenge is an indication that he doesn't have any mobility with his second and 3rd shots. For butterfly goalies, Hiller doesn't compare with Roy or Giguere. Ramo was sort of like that last year, but it seems he's improved a lot this year and adopted more of a hybrid style with great lateral mobility and pretty good athleticism.
I still say if the Flames hadn't picked up Hiller, they would be fine with Ramo and Ortio. It'll be interesting to see what the Flames will do with Ramo since his contract is up at the end of the season.
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I really didn't mean it to be a witch hunt for Hiller. He has stolen some games for us (e.g., Chicago early in the year), and for a while had me a believer. He absorbed rebounds and controlled the play. He just hasn't been the same lately.
Regarding playing deep in the net, it seems to be the current thought in goaltending that staying deep in the crease is a good thing, so I wouldn't fault him for that. It's just that Hiller just doesn't stay strong for those 2nd and 3rd shots, as you say. There was a goal somewhere around game twenty where he got scored on while not hugging the post. After that game, he seemed to adjust his play down low but he just hasn't seemed right. Hopefully the goaltending coaches are working with him on it. He's a good goalie but needs work.
Another thing that seems to be a common trait of Finnish goalies is how they control rebounds or direct shots into the corners. Ortio's blocker movement is very Kipper-esque. He is not trying to meet the puck straight on, rather he tries to steer it to the corner. He was definitely ON last night in this regard.
And one of the best assets that Ortio displayed last night was his ability to cover rebounds and control the play. I remember a loooong time ago, Brodeur was asked how he is able to play so many games each year. He said that it's because he gets his rebounds which reduces workload. Kipper did this in 03-04 too, and it showed in the shot totals, which were often in the low 20's. Covering the puck allows you to control the pace of the game.
This is all from a 'non-goalie but fan of the position' point of view. So, my analysis is open for debate. I'd love to hear some goalie coaches out there talk about him.