I think you have to give the net to Rittich if you want long term success this season and in the future. Now is the time to test him. If smith is the classy veteran who is as driven as everyone says then losing his defacto starter status hopefully lights a fire and turns it into a battle between the two.
Smith will go on a run of good games this year, but I am not convinced it will be very lengthy and we need Rittich to be the Kincaid to Smith's schneider if we plan on making noise in April.
I would debate that smith had a solid third period, he looked extremely shaky on most saves, and got lucky more than anything else. Again, he wasn't making saves to bail out the team when there are defensive breakdowns, which is what you need from your #1. The team played so well defensively in the third that he wasn't truly tested.
|