Miller

[Orange Seats]

Good enough?

 

Since we were talking about Hasek last week I was remembering how Hasek's play was superhuman, and the team around him wasn't great but was more or less "just good enough" to get the W. There were so many 1-0 or 2-1 Sabre victories back then that it was clear that we didn't have a great offense, just an amazing goalie that enabled a so-so offensive to win.

 

So today I was thinking, what would Miller look like without such a productive offense? Now I'm certainly not dumping on Miller, and I do think he is a highly skilled and talented goaltender (I remember sitting in the Arena the night of his first start and thinking that he was the team's future). But there have been so many times where he's done "enough" to get the W. I remember saying to myself after Game 1 of the Ottawa series that he let in 6 goals but yet it was enough to get the W. This year we've had to go to shootouts in 4 out of 5 games (or is it 3 out of 5, can't remember) but on the other hand he's been stellar in those shootouts.

 

This is definitely a case of digging deep to find something to talk about, and whatever Miller and the team is doing is obviously working.

 

So what do you think, is Miller a great goalie, or a good enough goalie to keep this team banging on all cylinders?

[inkman]

His goals against and Save percentage were among league leaders last year. He's also been money on shootouts.

 

 

Goals against 2005-2006

 

Save percentage 2005-2006

[DR HOLLIDAY]

His goals against and Save percentage were among league leaders last year. He's also been money on shootouts.

Goals against 2005-2006

 

Save percentage 2005-2006

 

Plus the new NHL has crazy power plays going on, its a different time for goalies, Miller is a good one, be happy to have him........... B-)

[Kristian]

Miller somehow seems to be able to tune into his A game when needed, and when not needed, he's fairly ordinary.

 

What makes him a great goalie IMO is that he seems to be in control of which game he brings. A or B.

 

Also, I think Miller is a goalie who's comfortable with a heavy workload, and needs to be tested regularly to be at his best. Which is what we saw in the playoffs last year, apart from a few shortside goals where he seemed a little out of position.

[Taro T]

Good enough?

 

Since we were talking about Hasek last week I was remembering how Hasek's play was superhuman, and the team around him wasn't great but was more or less "just good enough" to get the W. There were so many 1-0 or 2-1 Sabre victories back then that it was clear that we didn't have a great offense, just an amazing goalie that enabled a so-so offensive to win.

 

So today I was thinking, what would Miller look like without such a productive offense? Now I'm certainly not dumping on Miller, and I do think he is a highly skilled and talented goaltender (I remember sitting in the Arena the night of his first start and thinking that he was the team's future). But there have been so many times where he's done "enough" to get the W. I remember saying to myself after Game 1 of the Ottawa series that he let in 6 goals but yet it was enough to get the W. This year we've had to go to shootouts in 4 out of 5 games (or is it 3 out of 5, can't remember) but on the other hand he's been stellar in those shootouts.

 

This is definitely a case of digging deep to find something to talk about, and whatever Miller and the team is doing is obviously working.

 

So what do you think, is Miller a great goalie, or a good enough goalie to keep this team banging on all cylinders?

It's too soon to tell. But Miller definitely has a tendency to play a Grant Fuhr type of game. (Not saying his style is the same, Fuhr had a much quicker glove and a tendency to make routine saves look spectacular whereas Ryan moves side to side as well as anyone in the league but seems to need to work more on his glove hand.) To this point in his career, Miller has tended to make the big save when the team needed it even though his overall GAA isn't spectacular. That is VERY Fuhr-like.

 

My gut feel is that Miller will turn out to be a very good goalie. And one who's style is a perfect fit for this team. The team has faith that he will make the big save when needed (especially on a breakaway) thus the D can pinch more than they would be able to with a lesser goalie.

 

When the Sabres can only get 2 goals, Ryan finds a way to give up 2 or less. When they are firing on all cylinders, he might give up a couple more. It is very rare for him to let the team go down by 3 goals, and this team seems to believe that as long as they are within 2, they have the opponent right where they want them.

[BetweenThePipes00]

I think he still could be a great goalie, just not in the same way Hasek was. First of all, the game is different than when Hasek was in his prime. Hasek was great, but he also hit his prime in the Dead Puck Era. Miller (and most other goalies today) face more quality chances and power plays ... Hasek would still have been the best in the world, but I don't know that his numbers would be what they were.

 

But besides that, Miller seems to have developed the ability to forget the soft goal and make the big save when his team needs it. Grant Fuhr was eventually considered a great goalie in Edmonton, but it wasn't because he pitched a bunch of shutouts, he made the big saves to keep his team in it and eventually the firepower was too much. On a lesser scale, that is what we have seen this season.

 

The other thing this reminds me of is the classic exchange Boston goalie Gerry Cheevers had with reporters back in the '70s ... it was something like ...

 

Cheevers: "Think I'll ever win a Vezina Trophy?"

 

Reporters: All shake their heads no.

 

Cheevers, grinning: "Think I care?"

 

Again, they just shook their heads. Point is, all he cared about was giving up one less than the other guy and getting the win.

 

Seems like that is all that matters to Miller and everyone else on this team, getting the W. No one will care what your GAA was if you are wearing a ring.

[hopeleslyobvious]

I think this year is too early to look at stats. So far I think Miller has had 2 great games (Carolina and Detroit), and 1 game where he came up big when needed (Montreal in the shootout), and 1 game where he didn't have a great performance...If I had to pick a game for him to not have his best night, it would be when the team scores 8.

 

It's too early to look at stats for 2 reasons:

 

1. Sample size is not large enough to give a good enough picture.

 

2. Miller hasn't really settled into his game yet.

 

I think during the span of when he came back from his injury until around the Olympic break last year we saw what Miller was capable of. During the 15 games after his injury, he put up a 1.80 GAA and around a .935 SV%.

 

I would like to see a little more consistency.

 

If Miller played on a team that wasn't as good offensively, I think he would do even better statistically. The team plays a wide open style and takes a lot of chances. I don't think they could do that with too many goaltenders. If he played on a more defensively minded team I think he would have better numbers.

 

Also, You can't compare goaltenders stats after the lockout against stats from the mid 90's to the lockout. It's like comparing apples and oranges.