Wishful Thinking

The Flyers are an exciting team that looks formidable on paper, though their goaltending this year has basically been a joke.  Yes, the team defense is very loose, as I have previously written, but the goaltending has simply been bad as well.

Flyers fans desperately want to believe Bryzgalov will sort things out in time for the playoffs.  My opinion is, it is unreasonable to expect Bryzgalov to flip the switch and look like a different goalie when he has struggled otherwise all season long.  Still, the Flyers didn't sign him after a flash in the pan season in Phoenix--he had multiple excellent seasons so there has to be something there.

The best (reasonable) hope is that Bryzgalov builds some momentum into the playoffs.  Recently there have been some encouraging signs, though they are less than concrete indicators.  His body language looks better.  There is less shrugging and sighing and throwing back of his head when conceding a goal, and his movement in the crease has been much quicker.  It creates the impression that he's getting some fire and determination back in his game.

What do the stats say?  Here's how his save percentage has tracked this season;

The empty spaces are the end of a calendar month.  You can see a moderate improvement recently, with his season being dragged down by runs in late October and approaching New Year's.

One thing hidden in that chart is the little peak in Mid-December.  The high point there come on December 13th.  24/7 aired it's first episode on December 14th and Bryzgalov's play quickly fell off.  Coincidence?  Probably not.  The Flyers tried to shut him off from the media earlier in the season seeing it as a distraction for him, and being a star on 24/7 was the complete opposite of that.

It may be simple wishful thinking on my part, but I think Bryzgalov will continue to moderately improve.  It's a shock for most athletes, nevermind goalies, to play in Philadelphia.  You cannot look at his performance in games like Calgary the other night and call it a game well played overall, but we're beginning to see a few gut check saves and moments.

Also, a lot was made of Bryzgalov's comment about "finding the peace in his soul to play in this city," and how it was a very bad and discouraging sign.  I disagree and say it was a good thing.  It may sound like a defeated attitude to some, but Bryzgalov is brutally honest.  I think most Philadelphia fans would proudly state it takes guts and a certain kind of person to succeed in this town.  Here Bryzgalov is accepting of that state of affairs and seeking to adjust to it.  He's not in denial of the challenges of playing in Philly, he's not saying he's lost in the woods and terrible, just saying I need to figure this thing out.  That's okay with me.