Quote:
Originally Posted by GranteedEV
Why is any 26 year old goalie "out of the league"? He's unproven.
I am not saying he's the next Matt Murray here, nor am I disagreeing that we upgraded in net for the immediate future. I am simply saying that he has thus far trended towards around where many successful non-phenom goaltenders his age were at. How great was our own current starting tandem after their age 25 seasons? I mean Chad Johnson at age 26 was Phoenix' 3rd stringer, getting a whopping four games that year. Brian Elliott at age 25 had a sub .900 save percentage between two different teams yet somehow started 55 games.
Just going by my eyes and all the games Ortio kept us in, Ortio showed he could hang at the NHL level and do certain things that were especially encouraging (smother rebounds, play the puck). He wasn't a finished product in my opinion.
If you disagree, that's fine by me. I don't need your approval of my opinion.
Where was it written that there wasn't "an" opportunity? A 2-way deal playing behind Ben Bishop and Andrei Vasilevskiy might still constitute "an" opportunity. Doesn't mean that's a great opportunity.
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Woah. A little sensitive about this are we?
I didn't say you needed approval of my opinion. Why is it when people get challenged on viewpoint to defend it - they get so defensive. Stand in there and make your case!
I think the reality is that there are simply fewer positions for goalies overall.
This math is probably somewhat wrong but you've got probably 5-6 professional goalie slots in each organization between the NHL/AHL/ECHL. So overall there are 180 spots for a goalie to land in the NA pro game and as part of the direct developmental path.
That is compared to thousands (I think - math is hard) for skaters.
So each organization has to have a pretty high bar when it comes to how to use those slots. You are either good enough for an organization to use up one of their few spots on you - or you aren't.
Now there is a nuance that he probably could stayed in NA - but not at the commitment level he wanted. And at his age, I don't have a problem with him not wanting to spend his season in ECHL or even AHL. That is a personal choice.
But overall the small # of spots to put a goalie, naturally means that when given an opportunity - you best take advantage of it.
My personal opinion of the player is that he showed some ability to hang in the NHL, but not with enough consistency. If he was younger - I would have been fine to give him one of the developmental positions in the organization, but at this point - those spots and the coaching focus that comes with them - should be on other players earlier in the pipeline.
Ortio's upside is probably NHL back-up at best. Would rather focus on the guys that still have upside beyond that.