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On the importance of goaltending

Sergei Bobrovsky

Blue Jackets coach Todd Richards had a good quote recently about the relative struggles of his Vezina Trophy-winning goalie, Sergei Bobrovsky, compared to last season.

“He made me a good coach last year, and that’s what that one position can do,” Richards said, per the Columbus Dispatch. “If a team’s struggling, the coach isn’t very good. All of a sudden the goalie becomes good, and all of a sudden the coach seems to know what he’s doing. That’s the one position where they’re able to do that.”

With that in mind, we thought it could be interesting to list a few teams that have experienced substantial variation in their team save percentage, for bettor or for worse, from last season to this season.

Columbus (from .920 to .907) -- Not surprisingly, the Jackets’ record has been negatively affected. They’re currently 5-9-0, tied for 25th in the NHL with just 10 points.

Ottawa (from .933 to .921) -- Like the Jackets, the Sens haven’t been able to rely so much on goaltending in 2013-14. A .921 team save percentage is still very good, but Ottawa’s record (5-6-4) is not.

NY Rangers (from .920 to .903) -- Henrik Lundqvist had a pretty awful start, but he seems to be back in form lately. And wouldn’t you know it? The Rangers are starting to win some games.

Edmonton (from .917 to .875) -- Based on team save percentage, the Oilers have the worst goaltending in the NHL. Question: if Devan Dubnyk had been good to start the season, what are the chances Dallas Eakins would be forced to tell Nail Yakupov to ignore the trade rumors?

Tampa Bay (from .899 to .911) -- There are, of course, teams that have seen their goaltending improve. Like the Lightning, who’ve received excellent work from Ben Bishop. At this point, Bishop is looking like a nice addition by general manager Steve Yzerman.

Montreal (from .904 to .934) -- The Habs finished October with an 8-5-0 record. Carey Price finished the month with a .939 save percentage. Not a coincidence.

St. Louis (from .902 to .915) -- Jaroslav Halak has been healthy and solid for the Blues. Brian Elliott has been much improved as well. And if that’s not scary enough for the rest of the league, St. Louis has found its scoring touch. Only the Sharks (3.73) are scoring more goals per game than the Blues (3.46).

Toronto (from .917 to .935) -- Safe to say the Maple Leafs would be in trouble if not for their tandem of James Reimer and Jonathan Bernier. But credit general manager Dave Nonis for getting two very capable players to solidify the most important position in the game. It’s always a nice luxury to have, even if some like to focus on the “controversy” aspect.

Colorado (from .901 to .955) -- Last but not least, the Avalanche currently boast the highest team save percentage in the NHL. They also have the highest points percentage, at .923. Without Semyon Varlamov and J.S. Giguere, there’s no chance they’d be 12-1-0 after 13 games. None.