Goaltending and Environment: Kevin Woodley of InGoal Magazine on the Instigator Podcast

[Archie Lee]

I hope the link below works.  It is to a recent Instigators podcast (Sabre fan podcast).  The guest is Kevin Woodley of InGoal magazine and NHL.com.  He breaks down the goalie situation in Buffalo.  Woodley gets his advanced stats from Clear Sight Analytics.  I believe the host is Chris Ostrander, who I think does a fine job.

https://t.co/Rc1b9zrLa7

I highly recommend listening to anyone interested in understanding the impact of environment on goaltenders.

To summarize, Woodley explains why the environment in Buffalo has been terrible for goalies.  Last season the Sabres finished in the bottom 1/3 in pretty much all defensive areas that impact scoring chances. Further, they were 30th in the NHL in the critical area of preventing cross-ice scoring chances. Woodley references what he believes is the cumulative impact on a goaltender that comes from playing in that environment. A goalie who is being leaned on to start at a 65 game pace (UPL last year), playing in such an environment is likely to have it negatively impact his performance. A goalie can't trust what is happening in front of him and starts to cheat on cross-ice passes, which leads to disaster. Woodley has some good anecdotes on Lehner and Comrie that illustrate how the environment has been an issue in Buffalo for many years. He also explains why it has little to do with how talented your defensemen are, and everything to do with system and structure, starting with the forwards.

As well, Woodley provides interesting stuff on Dustin Wolf's game and how Levi might (or might not) benefit from implementing some changes that Wolf made. And there is a brief discussion on how the Sabres might manage Ratzaff and Leinonen this season; playing in the ECHL can be a very chaotic environment for young goalies who are often sent there without the necessary coaching support (and he is clear that he thinks highly of Sabre development coach Seamus Kotyk and that he is certain Kotyk has a plan to address this). 

Again, a good listen for the dog days of the off-season. 

[PromoTheRobot]

Thanks for posting. I was going to as well. Really drove home the point that what goes on in front of the goalie matters as much as the goalie. The Eric Comrie story was telling. Let's hope the Sabres defensive moves fix this issue.

Edited 7 hours ago by PromoTheRobot

[PerreaultForever]

So the short blunt version would be - D has sucked for years in Buffalo.

[PromoTheRobot]

7 hours ago, PerreaultForever said:

So the short blunt version would be - D has sucked for years in Buffalo.

Every "dud" Sabres goalie magically gets better when they leave. There's a reason. Also D includes the forwards.

[Big Guava]

4 minutes ago, PromoTheRobot said:

Every "dud" Sabres goalie magically gets better when they leave. There's a reason. Also D includes the forwards.

I mean except during the early tank years where the goalies almost cost us from playing so well.

[PromoTheRobot]

24 minutes ago, Big Guava said:

I mean except during the early tank years where the goalies almost cost us from playing so well.

Turns out beating Arizona would have been the better move.

Edited 7 hours ago by PromoTheRobot

[JohnC]

I wasn't able to read the link. But from the comments that have been made the underlying issue/question is whether our blueline unit is better with the additions made this offseason. Will the additions of Kesserling and Simmons upgrade the unit? If Kesserling becomes I suitable partner for Power, I think it will be an upgrade to that Power pairing. Will keeping Byram instead of trading him add to the unit? I would say yes. And will Samuelsson get healthy, regain his confidence and stabilize his game? As a third pairing player I think that would be a better situation for him. Will a Byrum/Dahling coupling turn out to be an upper echelon #1 pairing? With Dahlin it should be. On paper, the hope is that we will have three pairings where the players are slotted where they should be and not above what they are capable of. 

 

[inkman]

10 hours ago, PerreaultForever said:

So the short blunt version would be - D has sucked for years in Buffalo.

 

2 hours ago, PromoTheRobot said:

Every "dud" Sabres goalie magically gets better when they leave. There's a reason. Also D includes the forwards.

 

1 hour ago, JohnC said:

I wasn't able to read the link. But from the comments that have been made the underlying issue/question is whether our blueline unit is better with the additions made this offseason. Will the additions of Kesserling and Simmons upgrade the unit? If Kesserling becomes I suitable partner for Power, I think it will be an upgrade to that Power pairing. Will keeping Byram instead of trading him add to the unit? I would say yes. And will Samuelsson get healthy, regain his confidence and stabilize his game? As a third pairing player I think that would be a better situation for him. Will a Byrum/Dahling coupling turn out to be an upper echelon #1 pairing? With Dahlin it should be. On paper, the hope is that we will have three pairings where the players are slotted where they should be and not above what they are capable of. 

 

As Perrault and Promo eluded to, the forwards need to be just as adept at defense as the defenseman.  Based on the eye test, the forwards have done a much worse job than the defenseman at playing actual defense.  
 

It’s about being a team player and putting forth effort where little reward is offered.  Playing sound D as a forward isn’t going to get you $7 million a season.  Scoring 30 goals will though.  Guess which path most of our forwards for the last decade have chosen.  
 

It’s why players like Zucker and Greenway stick out.  They understand the job at both ends of the ice. Glad they were resigned.  Glad the team is coveting more defensive minded forwards.  

[Flashsabre]

Hmmm the goalies have changed, the players have changed yet the defensive coverage continues to be bad.

Its almost like the people that oversee the systems all still being employed might be the bigger problem

Edited 4 hours ago by Flashsabre

[Weave]

16 minutes ago, Flashsabre said:

Hmmm the goalies have changed, the players have changed yet the defensive coverage continues to be bad.

Its almost like the people that oversee the systems all still being employed might be the bigger problem

They have changed too.  We’ve been through several iterations of Asst Coaches since Bylsma dared to install a defensively responsible system and was roundly criticized for it.

Edited 4 hours ago by Weave

[LTS]

They have, but the consistency in the recent past is Wilford.  This podcast seems to indict that the system is broken or not being followed which is as good as being broken.

To Weave's point.  Bylsma had a complex system. On paper it might have been great but in execution it was a failure.

We've talked consistently about the forwards being part of the problem with defensive zone coverage. All 5 skaters play a part in defending and keeping the puck out of high danger areas. The goalie cannot do anything about where the shot comes from, they can only attempt to stop it. But, if the goalie cannot anticipate where the shot will come from or is faced with continued low percentage save situations they will look bad.  It makes sense that it would snowball.

Hockey, more than any other sport in my opinion, cannot be won by having a single deficient skater in a position.  It's not to say that everyone on the ice has to be an incredible hockey player, but if you have one skater that doesn't mix well with the other 4 they will be left trying to cover those deficiencies.

Of course having bad defensive system does not mean the goalies are not also responsible, just that it's hard to know how good they can be when they have to compensate for the bad defensive system.

[Archie Lee]

17 minutes ago, Weave said:

They have changed too.  We’ve been through several iterations of Asst Coaches since Bylsma dared to install a defensively responsible system and was roundly criticized for it.

This is a good point. It’s been a long time since I thought about Bylsma’s system. My very amateur evaluation is that Bylsma struggles to communicate that playing defensively responsible hockey does not mean playing passively. I think this is something we struggled with last year. Teams that play good defensively, defend with vigour, strength, aggression. It’s not a task for the meek. 

A less than sound structure, implemented by a coach who does not possess the best modern communication skills, on a youthful, inexperienced, and not yet physically developed team, is a bad combination.  

[JohnC]

1 hour ago, inkman said:

 

 

As Perrault and Promo eluded to, the forwards need to be just as adept at defense as the defenseman.  Based on the eye test, the forwards have done a much worse job than the defenseman at playing actual defense.  
 

It’s about being a team player and putting forth effort where little reward is offered.  Playing sound D as a forward isn’t going to get you $7 million a season.  Scoring 30 goals will though.  Guess which path most of our forwards for the last decade have chosen.  
 

It’s why players like Zucker and Greenway stick out.  They understand the job at both ends of the ice. Glad they were resigned.  Glad the team is coveting more defensive minded forwards.  

I agree with your point about the importance of overall team defense that go beyond the goalies and blueliners.

Coaches need to coach and hold all players accountable for how they play. If they allow players to play too individually at the expense of the team, then they are not adequately doing their jobs.

[triumph_communes]

A season with no cozens and peterka or Mittelstadt. Maybe the goalies will have a chance?

[LGR4GM]

Almost like Wilford sucks

2 hours ago, Flashsabre said:

Hmmm the goalies have changed, the players have changed yet the defensive coverage continues to be bad.

Its almost like the people that oversee the systems all still being employed might be the bigger problem

And even a dolt should be able to figure it out, but here we are

[Mango]

15 hours ago, PerreaultForever said:

So the short blunt version would be - D has sucked for years in Buffalo.

They're one of the biggest problems with the Adams era. They perform near the bottom rung but they're amongst the most expensive in the league.

They're a terrible unit and they suck up more resources than like 30 other teams across they league.

[PerreaultForever]

7 hours ago, PromoTheRobot said:

Every "dud" Sabres goalie magically gets better when they leave. There's a reason. Also D includes the forwards.

Ya, every year we talk about net front. We've always had some puck movers, but also always a lack of net front clearers. Even Dahlin, our best D, gets turned around and ends up doing little more than screening our own goalie. We need to be stronger in front. Kesselring helps but the other guys like Power have to be stronger too. 

[PerreaultForever]

4 hours ago, inkman said:

 

 

As Perrault and Promo eluded to, the forwards need to be just as adept at defense as the defenseman.  Based on the eye test, the forwards have done a much worse job than the defenseman at playing actual defense.  
 

It’s about being a team player and putting forth effort where little reward is offered.  Playing sound D as a forward isn’t going to get you $7 million a season.  Scoring 30 goals will though.  Guess which path most of our forwards for the last decade have chosen.  
 

It’s why players like Zucker and Greenway stick out.  They understand the job at both ends of the ice. Glad they were resigned.  Glad the team is coveting more defensive minded forwards.  

Contrary to what Granato believed D is not easy and it does take time for young guys to learn to play the right way. Our offense first focus sets them back in terms of complete development and the D breaks down frequently. It's coaching, but also team philosophy. 

[msw2112]

7 hours ago, PromoTheRobot said:

Every "dud" Sabres goalie magically gets better when they leave. There's a reason. Also D includes the forwards.

Sadly, this is not limited to goalies.