Quote:
Originally Posted by Brick
Play David Rittich until he loses, then give Mike Smith a chance until he loses...rinse, repeat.
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The one issue I have with that 'play until you fail' is confidence. I think Calgary needs to find a 1A/1B situation until they have a true #1, and that relies on both goalies being engaged. Smith could turn up his nose to the whole 1B situation, but if he looks in the mirror he will realize that his younger days are all that's offering him that opportunity in the first place.
As an example:
MTL: Rittich
EDM: Rittich
VGK: Smith
WPG: Rittich
VGK: Smith
Would put Smith as a good 1B situation to build games and confidence against the Golden Knights, while we have the better chance in net in the games we'll rely on our 'tender the most. Plus, with Arizona, Dallas, Chicago, and Columbus coming up we would see Smith regain a bit more starts - unless he craps the bed against Vegas.
IMO, that gives this season an opportunity to have a goalie battle or a clear #1 emerge from this mess they started the season with. We could have a positive situation to talk about as early as December if they start tackling this as a duo. It all really relies on trusting Rittich in the bigger games and Smith buying into an opportunity to claw back starts with solid play against the weaker teams.