The Chicago Blackhawks adding former goaltender Jimmy Waite to the coaching staff as the goalie coach gives Corey Crawford a new voice to listen to.
While Crawford’s former goalie coach, Stephane Waite, is Jimmy’s brother, he’s not expecting the difference between the two to be drastic as Blake Schuster of the Chicago Tribune shared.
“I’ve heard that they sort of teach the same way, sort of the same philosophy,” Crawford said of the Waite brothers. “I think it will be an easy transition again and he’ll be someone who is going to be very easy to communicate with and we can exchange ideas.”
Crawford’s numbers dipped a little bit last season from where they were during the Blackhawks’ run to the Stanley Cup in 2013. His save percentage dropped from .926 in 2013 to .917 in 2013-14. His numbers were still strong last season, but in the playoffs things fell off a bit more as he posted a .912 mark in leading Chicago to the Western Conference Final.
Doing anything to help get those numbers back up helps and bringing in a new coach from a familiar family can help make things a little easier.