Athlétique.Canadien Posted February 24, 2007 Share Posted February 24, 2007 Only problem is he gets a little deep in his crease And, to think that Rollie will have him out of that faster than we might think (hoping). I have a feeling and I suspect (don't have any real evidence) that he is a super fast adapting learner Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
habs rule Posted February 24, 2007 Share Posted February 24, 2007 And, to think that Rollie will have him out of that faster than we might think (hoping). I have a feeling and I suspect (don't have any real evidence) that he is a super fast adapting learner i would say he has to be since he went from being drafted 257th or so to the nhl in record time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athlétique.Canadien Posted February 24, 2007 Share Posted February 24, 2007 i would say he has to be since he went from being drafted 257th or so to the nhl in record time. Your avatar makes me happy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aebischer4life Posted February 24, 2007 Share Posted February 24, 2007 Hes the next Dryden. Its that simple. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fromage Posted February 24, 2007 Share Posted February 24, 2007 Hes the next Dryden. Its that simple. What will Price be? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athlétique.Canadien Posted February 24, 2007 Share Posted February 24, 2007 What will Price be? Who cares. Don't get me wrong. Price is an awesome prospect. The best :can: in 3 to 5 years of drafts so say some media pundits. Whether or not that is true we will see. Based on the 2007 U20's results, he's clearly classified as a Lethal Weapon. He was shutdown KILLER! Having Halak (who is reminding me now at this point of the Kipper-this is just too good ) is amazing. I say Price will be better. But Halak is awesome! :hlogo: Such difficult problems these Habs have eh? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gohabsgo252006 Posted February 24, 2007 Share Posted February 24, 2007 His stats don't tell the tale. As most have already said, he has gotten very unlucky on alot of the goals against him. The real comment that most have made on Halak is that he HAS NOT given up a real softie. Only one of the goals could even be close and it was a screened point shot against Nashville. This is the main difference between he and Aebischer. Aebischer MAY give you one more difficult save but will let in a softie and deflate the team. Halak stops what he is supposed to stop and occasionally gives you the important nice save too at the key time to preserve a win. Further his puckhandling is the reason our D has played so well of late, getting the pucks in time to make a pass out of the zone before the forecheck is all over them forcing a turnover as was the case with Huet and Aebischer for quite some time. Best puckhandling goalie I've seen on the Habs perhaps in my lifetime. Halak = good positioning + NO softies + great puckhandling. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sir_Boagalott Posted February 24, 2007 Share Posted February 24, 2007 He's also had the benefit of the team playing better in front of him and playing their way out of the funk that had dragged the team down over the last few weeks. But maybe that the best effect of all. The guys know he's a rookie and have felt the need to work a little harder on offence in support. If that's true, I'm just worried that if they rack up a five- or six-game winning streak, they'll let up a little and fall back into bad habits of the past. I'm not so sure. I think its more of a confidence thing in general than anything. When a team has confidence in their goalie they play better in front of him, and when they dont the opposite is true and they play shitty. I think the Habs recent funk was caused by a lack of faith in goaltending. Huet was letting in some bad goals and so was Abby. When you have so many 1 goal games, 1 soft goal can easily put the team into a we've already lost mindset. In the Nash game when they were down 2-0 early on the team never had that we've already lost mindset because they have faith in Halak. I agree that so far Halak hasnt really made any miraculous high light reel saves yet. However, I dont think its because he's not capable, I think its because he's that good. Like others have already said, he seems to be primarily a positional style goalie. My theory as to why he hasnt mad any incredible looking saves is because he is so good at positioning himself. It's wierd, but he seems to have an uncanny nack of positioning himself in the right place for the right time to make an easy looking save. i.e. he doesnt need to make any sprawling over glove save dives because he's already over there in position. That is 1 of the largest aspects to being a goalie. The ability to see where everyone is and be able to somewhat predict who will be where when and who the actual scoring threat is and then position yourslef accordingly in order to react. So far from what I've seen of Halak is that is really good at that. Time will tell, it could totally just be a coincidence so far but hopefully he can keep it up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dutch_Habs_Fan Posted February 24, 2007 Share Posted February 24, 2007 Hope you guys find him still amazing after he lets 3 soft goals in and we lose the game. The guy is 21, a rookie and has to learn still a lot. Rookie's how good they are, still make mistakes, and have huge high's and deep low's. Not consistent. But keep it up Halak!! Good job! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Puck Posted February 24, 2007 Share Posted February 24, 2007 (edited) I notice that he has had a lot of trouble communicating with our D. Usually once or twice a game there is some confusion while Halek is out of the net with the puck. So far it hasn't cost us. I don't think the D are used to anything other than a goalie leaving the puck behind the net. I assume this will get straightened out at practice and then I think Halek's puck handling will become a big asset. Edited February 24, 2007 by Peter Puck Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kaos Posted February 24, 2007 Share Posted February 24, 2007 Halak seems alright so far. I'm impressed witht he rookie. Atleast 2 of the 5 goals against Nashville were not his fault. They deflected off defensman. So far so good. Can't wait to see more Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobRock Posted February 24, 2007 Share Posted February 24, 2007 (edited) Hope you guys find him still amazing after he lets 3 soft goals in and we lose the game. The guy is 21, a rookie and has to learn still a lot. Rookie's how good they are, still make mistakes, and have huge high's and deep low's. Not consistent. But keep it up Halak!! Good job! I don't know about three soft goals. The first one was batted out of the air, and Neilsen's game winner was a case of Neilsen waiting him out. Vezina winners get beat like that if the shooter has the time and patience to wait it out. The second one, back hand to the far side, that wasn't a great one. However, he did make some great saves to keep the game close. It could have been 5-2 or 6-2 on a couple of chances. I think it was Halak's best individual game so far, even though he lost. Edited February 24, 2007 by RobRock Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Strummerman Posted February 24, 2007 Share Posted February 24, 2007 I find him to be steady in relation to Abby and even Huet, however he is not spectacular Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dutch_Habs_Fan Posted February 25, 2007 Share Posted February 25, 2007 I don't know about three soft goals. The first one was batted out of the air, and Neilsen's game winner was a case of Neilsen waiting him out. Vezina winners get beat like that if the shooter has the time and patience to wait it out. The second one, back hand to the far side, that wasn't a great one. However, he did make some great saves to keep the game close. It could have been 5-2 or 6-2 on a couple of chances. I think it was Halak's best individual game so far, even though he lost. If you check the date on my post, it was before the game. I was just a bit unhappy that my prediction came out... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KoZed Posted February 25, 2007 Share Posted February 25, 2007 Dont be fooled by my avatar. The slogan is just what came up to mind when I read his nickname was Jaro (anyone knows the old Black Sabbath song "Zero the Hero"??). I dont expect Halak to be a hero, a savior or anything else than a 21 yrs old goalie with little pro experience should be. And that's what he's been so far. Didn't play above his head, but didn't looked outclassed or overwhelmed. Halak was never in the equation this season to begin with, so what he's shown so far is to be ahead of his expected learning curve. I'll keep some skepticism though. Theo, Garon, Danis and even Michaud all showed some good stuff when in their early 20's so there's reasons to temper our impressions. Halak should still be considered nothing more than a good young prospect a couple years away of being a reliable NHL goalie, let alone a legitimate full-time starter. Compare Halak to Lethonen (same Euro background, World Juniors experience and AHL stage). Lethonen was much more heralded and can still be seen as a franchise goalie. Lethonen is 23, 2 years older than Halak, and he's still having some difficulties being consistent in his #1 role. Its safe to say we shouldn't place any big hopes on Halak before a couple more years. He has the upside of pulling a sort of Cam Ward; but it's would be a best-case scenario that's unlikely to happen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BTH Posted February 25, 2007 Share Posted February 25, 2007 Alright, without reading a single post in this thread, I'll comment and see if anyone disagrees. I stand by what I said the other night that Halak doesn't really look NHL ready. He's a 21-year-old with very little pro experience (half a season splitting games in the AHL) doing the best he can for us but at this point in time he just isn't an NHL goalie. His biggest flaw so far has been his rebound control. It is NOT worse than Aebischer's. He also seems to have trouble with deflected pucks. He's good at gettting his glove on shots but has lots of trouble hanging onto them. They fly back out of his glove more than any goalie I've ever seen. Like Aebischer, he also doesn't seem to be able to go a game without letting in a bad goal. Yes, he's a good goalie, quick and mature, and yes, he'll only get better. But he's got a lot to learn and Aebischer would be the better option right now if not for the hope that a new face between the pipes will give our skaters some flair. GO :hlogo: GO! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobby Posted March 7, 2007 Share Posted March 7, 2007 (edited) Jaro has quietly moved ahead of David Aebisher as the #1 goalie in Montreal. If he plays well enough to get the Habs to the playoffs, he will be the starter in the playoffs, regardless of Cristobal Huet. If they make it to the playoffs and he performs well there, it becomes his job to lose next season. I'm pretty sure that Halak is here to stay, at least in hockey terms. It will be interesting to watch his progress in relation to the top pick of the 2003 draft, Marc-Andre Fleury. Halak, who was one of the last players drafted that year (#271 overall), has matched or bettered Fleury's numbers internationally, in the QMJHL, and in the AHL so far in his career. He also has better numbers in the time he has been in the NHL, compared to Fleury over the past couple of weeks. "Flurry Of Goals" was yanked tonight after giving up 3 goals in 7 shots in the first period. Edited March 21, 2007 by bobby Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JMMR Posted March 7, 2007 Share Posted March 7, 2007 I support this decision Aebischer was just terrible aginst the Sabres. I hope Halak gets at least 4 or 5 starts in a row to see what he can do. Also the team seems to play more confident in front of him. As for the playoffs if Halak gets them in it will be thanks to some INCREDIBLE goaltending so Huet shouls begin as the back up and be ready to step in if Halak hits a bump. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athlétique.Canadien Posted March 7, 2007 Share Posted March 7, 2007 It's up to Halak. It had better not be all up to him though. He needs some help from his friends. If we can get that game back then Halak is just what the doctor ordered! Go Halak Go. :hlogo: Sorry Abby, maybe I'll be a fan again if you finally play well on your next outing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShortHanded Posted March 7, 2007 Share Posted March 7, 2007 Lots of pressure for a kid. I hope he plays well, but I hope ppl don't get down on him if he's not the saviour we've been waiting for. Remember this is his first taste of the NHL. It'd be nice if it happened, but It shouldn't be his job to pick the team up on his back and take it to the playoffs... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobby Posted March 7, 2007 Share Posted March 7, 2007 (edited) I have a feeling that Halak will do well. He has nothing to lose, he has already beaten all the odds coming this far from being a 9th round pick. Out of Slovakia no less. I don't know if the country has ever produced an NHL goaltender up to now. Same/same for the team as a whole. They have nothing to lose at this point. The pressure is always on the teams just hanging onto a playoff spot because they are afraid to lose. Let a couple other teams sit in the pressure cooker for awhile, and "draft" in behind them like a smart F1 driver or short track cyclist. Wait for that "slingshot effect" moment. edit - Peter Budaj who has put Jose Theodore on the bench in Colorado recently is also Slovakian. But Halak is the youngest goaltender in the NHL at the moment. Edited March 7, 2007 by bobby Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
InsaneHABSfan Posted March 7, 2007 Share Posted March 7, 2007 David Aebisher played good sometimes in Colorado, other times I threw stuff at the TV. You just CANNOT COUNT ON HIM! Halak has impressed me as a bright young hockey player that seems to be calm and moves the puck quite well. I hope they play him until he drops. We all know Danis is pretty good and Huet can be good. Halak now has a chance to prove himself and I hope Montreal gives him the chance. If they play Aebisher chances of a post season do decrease because he is playing awefull! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Posted March 7, 2007 Share Posted March 7, 2007 well to be honest, it's up to the rest of the players to actually play more then a 20 minute game. Whether Halak has a fantastic game or an average game, the players in front of him need to give there head a shake. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saskhab Posted March 7, 2007 Share Posted March 7, 2007 Halak should be finishing what he started in the AHL. He's been rushed. Not many goalies can play in the NHL at 21 (maximum 3 at any given time, usually just 1). He's an AHL rookie, remember. I fear he's due for a major regression in his development next year as a result. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobby Posted March 7, 2007 Share Posted March 7, 2007 Habs have 5 goaltenders in the system now who have played in the NHL this year. Huet, Aebisher, Halak, Leighton, and Sauve. I don't think they can use Sauve except in the AHL, however. If Sauve looks better than Danis, they may sign him for next year. Leighton as well. For better or worse, however, Halak is the man of the moment. Probably the man of the near future as well. He has excelled at every level so far, I think he will justify the faith in the NHL. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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