David Marcoux: how the Flames transition from Smith to Rittich

[sureLoss]

Interesting perspective from a goalie coach that worked both with Peters and Kipper

https://www.nhl.com/news/calgary-fac...ie/c-304577610

When Smith was injured last February, Rittich was the No. 1. At times, he faltered when the demands were much higher. Last season, a late-season fade had Calgary finish with 84 points, 11 behind the Colorado Avalanche, who were the second wild card into the playoffs from the Western Conference.

It appears this time is different. Rittich seems comfortable as the starter. So, Smith must remain patient and positive.

Experience, as they say, is what you get when you don't get what you want.

You can never underestimate what the seemingly negative experience of last season is worth to Rittich now.

He needs to bring to the forefrontthe lessons learned from his struggles last season. Smith must focus on bringing his best game, and to draw on his own past experiences, to be a warrior, not a worrier.

This team has depth and great chemistry. Their defense is playing so well that if they can survive the challenges of February, they are going to be more than OK for the postseason.

With condensed schedules, extended travel and frequent time-zone changes, teams can't get by with one goalie in the NHL today, in my opinion. We saw it last year with the Stanley Cup Champion Washington Capitals who used Philip Grubauer early in the playoffs before returning to Braden Holtby.

Calgary will be no different this season. It will need Rittich and Smith to each be successful.

[Locke]

Ugh...I dont even want to talk about last season's 'fade away.'

There was nothing to learn about the team from the tail-end of last season other than that Gulutzan should have been fired at Christmas.

He has all of the intestinal fortitude and inspirational qualities of undercooked pasta.

[EVERLAST]

Excited we can have such an incredible turn around In 1 year.
Man whod of thunk it?

[Gaudfather]

A tandem in net is critical, and Smith and Rittich both will be key in this stretch run and in the playoffs.


It appears (from the outside) that Smith realizes he is the 1b option at best, and is maintaining a healthy attitude about where he slots. This is a good thing.

[Textcritic]

Originally Posted by Locke

Ugh...I dont even want to talk about last season's 'fade away.'

There was nothing to learn about the team from the tail-end of last season other than that Gulutzan should have been fired at Christmas.

He has all of the intestinal fortitude and inspirational qualities of undercooked pasta.

It is foolish to ignore the past and to learn nothing. I have said this before, but had Gulutzan been fired last Christmas, who would be the Flames coach today? I'm willing to bet it would not have been Bill Peters.

Anyhow, what Marcoux is saying here is close to how I view the stretch-drive, and it would seem that the coaches see things the same way. The Flames need two goalies.

[Locke]

Originally Posted by Textcritic

It is foolish to ignore the past and to learn nothing. I have said this before, but had Gulutzan been fired last Christmas, who would be the Flames coach today? I'm willing to bet it would not have been Bill Peters.

Anyhow, what Marcoux is saying here is close to how I view the stretch-drive, and it would seem that the coaches see things the same way. The Flames need two goalies.

Its also foolish to attempt to draw conclusions from flawed data.

The team quit. The goalie got hung out to dry. The coaching was Dead Man Walking. What can you learn from a bunch of guys going through the motions and playing out the string?

[Flashpoint]

Originally Posted by Locke

The team quit. The goalie got hung out to dry. The coaching was Dead Man Walking. What can you learn from a bunch of guys going through the motions and playing out the string?

Oiler hockey.

[Textcritic]

Originally Posted by Locke

Its also foolish to attempt to draw conclusions from flawed data.

The team quit. The goalie got hung out to dry. The coaching was Dead Man Walking. What can you learn from a bunch of guys going through the motions and playing out the string?

Despite solid stats as a backup, Rittich seemed overwhelmed by the pressure of suddenly being the go-to guy for a team that was fighting for a playoff invite, struggling to a 3-4-1 record with a cringe-worthy .888 save percentage during that span.

Sigalet wanted to be sure that Rittich eventually benefitted from that bummer. His troubles, he stressed, were not technical.

“Last year, when he got the net, I think he lost his personality a little bit,” Sigalet said. “He was almost too focused. I know that sounds weird, but he’s better when he’s loose and just treating every game like the same, whether you’re playing one in every seven games or you’re playing every night.

“I send him a text every night saying, ‘Be David Rittich. Same preparation, same way. Don’t change anything.’ ”

https://calgarysun.com/sports/hockey...oad-for-flames

I am thankful that David Rittich seems to take a different approach than blaming his troubles on his teammates and his coach.

[FlamesAddiction]

Marcoux is right. Tandems are the way to go now and into the future. That is why it bothers me when people say that Smith is "just the back-up" now and it is a waste of assets to replace him. Your second goalie can be a huge weak link these days.

[Zevo]

Jesus H Christ...The fixation some have for GG reminds me of the guys that can't stop talking #### about an ex long after it's over. Move on already. Flames are having a banner year if you haven't noticed.


Love hearing how teams deal with personnel issues from those in the biz. Seems to me Calgary has been dealing with the goaltender issue exactly how they should to still keep it competitive between the two. Sounds like a good transition so far.

[Lanny_McDonald]

Originally Posted by Zevo

Jesus H Christ...The fixation some have for GG reminds me of the guys that can't stop talking #### about an ex long after it's over.

Great white buffalo.

[GranteedEV]

Originally Posted by Textcritic

Despite solid stats as a backup, Rittich seemed overwhelmed by the pressure of suddenly being the go-to guy for a team that was fighting for a playoff invite, struggling to a 3-4-1 record with a cringe-worthy .888 save percentage during that span.

Boy I dislike narratives like this. I've posted the long version of my response a billion times but here is the short version:

Take away the one bad game (where he didn't get the benefit of a mercy pull) against Vegas and suddenly that is 3-3-1 and a league average .908 SV%. That includes Giordano's worst defensive performance of the season. And a few more pretty bad team performances against Boston and Colorado. And take away his overconfident giveaway against the Preds with a two goal lead and that becomes a .913

Rittich had a pretty bad game and the team wasn't very good in the second half. Sample size was way too small to be throwing around a phrase like "cringe-worthy" during that span, as if he cost us every game.

[Textcritic]

Originally Posted by GranteedEV

Boy I dislike narratives like this. I've posted the long version of my response a billion times but here is the short version:

Take away the one bad game (where he didn't get the benefit of a mercy pull) against Vegas and suddenly that is 3-3-1 and a league average .908 SV%. That includes Giordano's worst defensive performance of the season. And a few more pretty bad team performances against Boston and Colorado. And take away his overconfident giveaway against the Preds with a two goal lead and that becomes a .913

Rittich had a pretty bad game and the team wasn't very good in the second half. Sample size was way too small to be throwing around a phrase like "cringe-worthy" during that span, as if he cost us every game.

I never understood this to be the point of the article, which seems pretty clearly to me to tell a story about a goalie who learned from a tough stretch of games to improve. Simply put: Rittich is better this year than he was last season.

"Cringe-worthy" is an exaggeration, but I do not know that it differs much from a lot of the special pleading taking place in your re-telling. The way I see it, neither the Flames nor Rittich played well in March 2018.

[tvp2003]

A lot has been said about Rittich and Smith -- what is really disappointing is how Jon Gillies has fallen off the map. Don't know if he's battling an injury or something but the guy looked great during the preseason but by all accounts has struggled since going back to Stockton last fall.

Would have been an interesting scenario if Gillies was lighting it up in the AHL -- maybe he gets a shot at stealing the backup job from Smith?

[Robo]

Originally Posted by EVERLAST

Excited we can have such an incredible turn around In 1 year.
Man whod of thunk it?

I'm pretty sure a lot of the posters knew just how bad gg was even hearing his name gives me a bit of rage but I laugh now knowing he is part of the oilers organization

[ST20]

Originally Posted by Locke

Its also foolish to attempt to draw conclusions from flawed data.

The team quit. The goalie got hung out to dry. The coaching was Dead Man Walking. What can you learn from a bunch of guys going through the motions and playing out the string?

That flawed data seemed to be pretty important as it led to the change in coaching and swapping of personnel...

[Frank MetaMusil]

Originally Posted by Zevo

Jesus H Christ...The fixation some have for GG reminds me of the guys that can't stop talking #### about an ex long after it's over. Move on already.

Bro I am still mad. This wasn't 5 years ago, the team "just wasn't ready to play" less than 82 games ago. Wounds are still fresh around here. Some people STILL think he wasn't the problem. It's insanity.

[Fan in Exile]

Rittich's stats over the 8 games following Smith's injury last February is as bad as Smith has been for a year since his injury.

Thankfully, through the first two-thirds of this season Rittich has been one among the top ten goalies in the NHL and nowhere near as bad as Smith. I'm sure last season was a learning experience, and I'm glad that we can all see now that a subpar 8-game stretch while Rittich was a rookie did not provide us with sufficient information to determine that Rittich is not a No. 1 goalie.

We do however have enough data to conclude that Mike Smith is no longer a No. 1 and is not a reliable partner in a tandem. We need to find an upgrade on Smith more than any other team need heading into the stretch.

[Zevo]

Originally Posted by Frank MetaMusil

Bro I am still mad. This wasn't 5 years ago, the team "just wasn't ready to play" less than 82 games ago. Wounds are still fresh around here. Some people STILL think he wasn't the problem. It's insanity.

It was last year, the team is fun and exciting now. I just don't get taking what is basically a positive, interesting topic like how the Flames are managing the goalie situation , and seem to be doing it well, and dragging it through the stink of GG. I get it, he sucked balls and I totally agree but I don't need to read about in every topic. I know I'm going to because some people can't seem to let go and enjoy the moment but I don't have to like it!

[Jiri Hrdina]

Originally Posted by Frank MetaMusil

Bro I am still mad. This wasn't 5 years ago, the team "just wasn't ready to play" less than 82 games ago. Wounds are still fresh around here. Some people STILL think he wasn't the problem. It's insanity.

The key is I don't think he was THE problem
I think there were multiple problems
Which is why it's good both the coach was changed and key parts of the roster were improved.
I would suggest one without the other would not have made the impact we are seeing.