Quote:
Originally Posted by Hells Bells
Lets hope he is much better.
Being a rookie is irrelevant to what im saying. If the Flames wish to contend, they need more from a backup. If he can't be held to higher expectations due to his experience, find someone else.
I have no worries about him playing 15-20 games spread out over 82, I'm worried about what happens if Smith goes down and his workload increases.
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There is definitely a risk here, I agree. But the thing with young players is that at some point you must trust them either to sink or swim. And even if a player falters at that point, it is not necessarily something that should disqualify him from future opportunities. Rittich made big strides last year graduating from an AHL goalie to a competent NHL backup. I am interested to see if he can take another step, and this is a perfect situation for him to show that he has. We should know what he is after this year, but we are not there yet.