Quote:
Originally Posted by TrentCrimmIndependent
Welcome to hockey. What do you think people are going to focus on more between those two series?
He's .919 in one game. Agreed, let's see.
I hope he does well but ####, if you think I'm going to let the Edmonton performance go just cause he went toe to toe with Oettinger in round one one year then you're out to lunch.
I don't know why people rush to his defense to this day. He could've been a 20th ranked goalie last year and the team would be a top 3 pacific team, but he was a 40-50th ranked goalie and dragged them down just barely enough to miss.
He demonstrated his ability last night and essentially what was expected of him when he was signed here to a 6x6. He's brought THAT game in maybe 30% of the games he's started here. That's the standard we should expect and for the most part haven't gotten. .919 isn't outlandish either, as it was one time in line with his career average.
I'm just not in the business of making excuses/maintaining good will for guys longer than they've earned it. And I literally made the "I like Markstrom" thread mid last season...
I wish him well but if he pumpkins again I'll switch my allegiance to Wolf or whoever else can step up in the blink of an eye. No more patience of any kind of repeat of that train wreck .
So yes. Well done Marky. Now do that 30-40 more times.
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I think that Markstrom would be the first to acknowledge he did not play well last season. There are many possible reasons, some within his control and some outside his control. The Oilers series was challenging for the Flames as a whole - from my perspective. If you let McDavid walk-in multiple times a game, then you are going to have a tough series even if you have more shots.
I do want to push back on the .919 is the standard that should be expected every year. A career save percentage of .919 over a long enough period of time would put you into pretty small company and among some of the best to play the position. Even last year, a save percentage of .919 is tied for sixth in the league.
I have posted many times that I believe Markstrom was the primary reason (not the sole reason) the Flames did not make the playoffs, but I think your expectations of him are too high. If he returns to his career average of .909 this year, then the Flames have received what they bargained for.