Quote:
Originally Posted by savardandjokinen
While Peters might do that again, I think Carolina typically had borderline starting goalies (Ward, Darling, Lack, Khudobin). Here, the starter is clear, so I think Smith, if healthy, likely plays 60+ games
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He had better not.
Perhaps the biggest factor playing into the Flames success or failure this season is goaltending, and correctly managing the goalies is crucial. For nearly a decade now we have seen a growing trend in goalie performance that is directly tied to games played—the days of 70+ game workhorse goalies like Martin Brodeur, Miikka Kiprusoff, and Roberto Luongo are over. For Mike Smith to be effective over the long term and into the Spring, then he should not be playing more than 60 games.