Huet vs. Abby

Key Lime · Guru

Huet vs. Abby

flowerpower · Veteran Member

I say we keep Abby - he is has many years in the league compared to a half season Huet had. I am not saying Huet is a bad goalie but only time will tell. The competition is good and plus it will help us during the season to have rested goalies. Abby played well last night against the Leafs. Huet played well against Buffalo but he got hurt in the shootout. They mentioned it before the Leaf game last night.

barry33 · Guru

Huet still has alot to prove..30 games do not a career make. As a coach, I love having two strong goalies and having a goalie controversy. The best thing for Huet's career is to have someone breathing down his back for his job. If Theo had that when he was a hab, rather than a sense of entitlement, he may still be here.

Key Lime · Guru

Good point Barry. It does create an internal competition but if Huet does set himself apart from Abby with solid, consistent performances, will we need Abby? An option can be to keep him until the trade dealine and make a move then, if Huet is convicing enough.

barry33 · Guru

Key Lime wrote:

Good point Barry. It does create an internal competition but if Huet does set himself apart from Abby with solid, consistent performances, will we need Abby? An option can be to keep him until the trade dealine and make a move then, if Huet is convicing enough.

Ya it will play itself out Keylime..who knows what BG is thinking? I know last year that CJ was being told to play Theodore game in and game out by Gainey and it helped cost him his job. If Gainey does have plans to trade Abby, it will not get done if he sits on the bench.

Key Lime · Guru

It's a chess game Barry but you do have the option to put the ball in your court. What I mean is we have a group of really solid young talent and a good core of solid NHL veterans. Now's is not the time to screw things up (ei. Reject Houle). Put your team in a position for improvement. Right now the 2 ways I see that we can improve the Habs through a trade is Kovy and Abby. Like you said, game-breakers.

Fatherhab · Senior Member

Well I was at the Sens game last nite, right behind the Sabres net. Biron played very well. Buffalo has quite the Tandem.

plouf · Guru

Look at Carolina last year.
It is GREAT to have two solid goalies. I realize we can't totally afford it, and neither will be happy as #2, but let's run with this great situation as long as possible.

doodie · Veteran Member

pleeeeeeeeeeeeeze give me a break,HUET is 200% the better goalie than abby,competition there's no competition here, Abby is terrible,rotten,I could go on and on, montreal was lousey last night ,but THE LAFFS were worse,every shot at abby hit him ,or he was friggin lucky,if we have to depend on abby for this year,then fold the friggin tents we'll be going home .MAN either i'm blind or there are people on this board are watching a different ABBY than I am. Competition if I were HUET I wouldn't be worried about ABBY i'd be more worried if they brought up "PRICE" then you would see some competition. Another reason THE HABS didn't look good last night against the LAFFS is because they have to stay back to try and protect there end zone because ABBY's in there,thats when the confusion starts,the proof was in the pudding last night as to the other night

Key Lime · Guru

Strong opinions there Doodie. Can't say that I disagree with all of them but the being more worried about Price part falls in the exagerrated catgeory.

doodie · Veteran Member

Key Lime wrote:

Strong opinions there Doodie. Can't say that I disagree with all of them but the being more worried about Price part falls in the exagerrated catgeory.

The point being,anybody but ABBY (PRICE,denis, etc.) he just doesn't play like a confident goalie,HUET is always square to the puck ,where ABBY is flooping all over the ice

Key Lime · Guru

That's why if Huet picked up where he did last year, trading Abby for value in return would be a no-brainer.

plouf · Guru

I'm not a big fan of Aebischer. Huet I feel much more confident with, but you have to see past the ugly style. One of the ugliest goalies I've ever seen is Dominik Hasek. Talk about flopping, being out of position, etc.... But he got the job done. And as often as not, so has Aebischer.

Desi · Senior Member

Lots of interesting points being made here I think. I agree that it's good to have competition -- up to a point. Personally, though, I'd rather have a guy that's so good nobody questions whether he's No. 1 or not. And maybe in time we'll have that guy in Huet.

Abby and Huet have different styles, that's for sure. Huet does stay square to the puck very well, but he also goes down early a lot -- and the word is obviously out on him concerning that, which is why the Swords scored on him in the shootout so easily. But anybody who can play as well as Christo did last year definitely has a lot of talent, and I hope the competition for the starter spot brings it out in him. Sometimes a goalie plays better when he doesn't have to worry about such things. We'll find out which way it works with Huet.

As for Abby, he certainly does flop around a lot, spend a lot of time on his knees, etc. And he didn't have to make too many great saves last night vs. the Leaves. But I've known other goalies who were somewhat unorthodox (Hasek, Villemure, etc) and made it work. I hope that's the case with Abby -- but that jury is still way out.

I feel a lot better when Huet starts for us, but as so many have said here, it's a long season and we're only two games into it. It's good to give both ice time and see what we really have.

Les Canadiens sont la

ScottishHAB · Veteran Member

Just one thing- if Huet doesn't secure number 1 then that $3million a year is going to look an awful lot.He would also probably be harder to trade than Abby as he doesn't have the same record to fall back on.

barry33 · Guru

I think the point about Carolina having 2 strong goalies is well put. If they did not have Ward waiting in the wings last year then the habs would have won. So whether it is Abby, or Danis, it will be great if Carbo has another option.

doodie · Veteran Member

plouf wrote:

I'm not a big fan of Aebischer. Huet I feel much more confident with, but you have to see past the ugly style. One of the ugliest goalies I've ever seen is Dominik Hasek. Talk about flopping, being out of position, etc.... But he got the job done. And as often as not, so has Aebischer.

Hasek had an unorthodox style but he'd cover every part of the net ,at least when he flopped he knew which direction to flop,making the shooter second guess himself.....Abby on the other hand ...and i laugh everytime i say his name.....how in the name of HAB country did he ever stay in the NHL up til now,boggles my mine.....i'll make a prediction that he doesn't play 10 game with the HABS ...he'll be traded todays date oct. 10

-- Edited by doodie at 21:18, 2006-10-10

adam13 · Member

I prefer Cristowall more than than Abby. He is simply a better goalie.

However Abby throughout his career has been known for hot streaks and if he is going to start one right now lets ride.

But Cristowall is our long term option.

Traveling Hab · Veteran Member

adam13 wrote:

I prefer Cristowall more than than Abby. He is simply a better goalie.

However Abby throughout his career has been known for hot streaks and if he is going to start one right now lets ride.

But Cristowall is our long term option.

How is Huet a long term option less than 40 games into his career? I think he will be better than Aebischer, but right now it should be a competition and see who comes out on top. Remember, if we want to trade one, it will be right before the trade deadline, and if they are not both playing, the one who is sitting has little to no trade value.

Fatherhab · Senior Member

Ryan Miller - Buffalo----4th season ---68 games

Cam Ward - Carolina----4th season----31 games

Kari Lehtonen- Altanta-----4th season-----45 games

Bryzgalov- Anaheim--------4th season----98 games

Thomas- Boston----------3rd season------43 games

Toivonen- Boston----------2 seasons------31 games

Leclair- Columbus----------3rd season-----38 games

Lunundqvist- NY Rangers------2 seasons ----56 games

Huet-------Montreal/LA------ 4th season---- 89 games

It would appear that Montreal is not the only team with un-experienced goalies.

Traveling Hab · Veteran Member

Fatherhab wrote:

Ryan Miller - Buffalo----4th season ---68 games

Cam Ward - Carolina----4th season----31 games

Kari Lehtonen- Altanta-----4th season-----45 games

Bryzgalov- Anaheim--------4th season----98 games

Thomas- Boston----------3rd season------43 games

Toivonen- Boston----------2 seasons------31 games

Leclair- Columbus----------3rd season-----38 games

Lunundqvist- NY Rangers------2 seasons ----56 games

Huet-------Montreal/LA------ 4th season---- 89 games

It would appear that Montreal is not the only team with un-experienced goalies.

Agreed, Huet isn't the only inexperienced goalie in the league, but If you look at those teams, most have more than one capable starting goalie, so they are NOT betting it all on an inexperienced goalie. In that list I include Buffalo, Boston, and Anaheim.

Of the remaining goalies on your list, Lundqvist, Leclair, Lehtonen, and Ward have all been top prospects for years and have been performing up to or beyond expectations all of those years. Huet had always been looked at as a backup, and had always performed as an average backup until very recently.He is therefore that much harder to project.

Don't get me wrong, I am a believer, he is on my team in my hockey pool, but all I am saying is that he is much less of a sure thing than Lundqvist, Lehtonen, or Ward (I am comparing him to those three since those are the teams that have chosen to go with one young goalie and no other capable starter, Columbus is kind of forced to spend low). The habs are more in a position to keep two capable guys for at least a little while JUST IN CASE as have done the Ducks, the Bruins, and the Sabres.

I think Huet will be great. Maybe get a .915 save percentage, 6 shutouts, and get us into the playoffs, but why bet the farm 2 days into the season when we know that Aebischer would fetch more in a trade later in the season anyway? Let them compete. Let Huet regain his form (it's coming) and if it just so happens that Aebischer is a good starter this year, well isn't that just a wonderful problem to have?

heet_150 · Guru

Interesting article about two number one's.

Draws the conclusion that Abby will draw more attention for a trade (if he stays productive) due to his salary.

Traveling Hab · Veteran Member

Very interesting article.

Given Aebischer's salary and the fact that he is only under contract until the end of the season, he certainly is a very tradeable goalie. Other tenders around the league in similar goalie battles are not nearly as tradeable, so if he is playing well, even if he is outplaying Huet, he might get traded for that Defenseman or that Centre that we all want. Somehow I see Detroit on the market for a goalie around midseason.

Or how about Dallas. I know they already have a goalie, but we seem to be able to trade with them. Plus it's not like they don't want someone new for the playoffs. (not a serious suggestion by the way... at least not yet anyway)

barry33 · Guru

It is funny about goalies..but they seem to come in groups or "eras". YOu get a few years of really dominant ones (ie the Patrick Roy's, Hasek, Brodeur, Curtis Joseph, etc etc), then they kinda retire or their abilities diminish (except for Brodeur who still seems at the top of his game). Then you have a crop of "young guns" who come up through the system and develop, but there is a period where they are developing where you do not have a huge crop of gamebreakers. That is the stage I think we are at now. There are alot of really able goalies right now in the league. But I do not see many of the Roy's or Hasek's right now who put your team up by 2 goals before they even go on the ice. The Islanders must have thought that Dipietro was in that category though.

Right now you have about 5 goalies in the league who are just outstanding night in and night out. The rest of the teams have guys who you hold your breath and hope for the best because you do not know what you are gonna get. I think alot has to do with the new rules too. They are under siege.

Traveling Hab · Veteran Member

I think part of it is that we hit a golden age of goaltenders recently. It is that much harder for anyone to stand out. A 90% save percentage was incredible 15 years ago, now it is very average.

heet_150 · Guru

barry33 wrote:

but they seem to come in groups or "eras". YOu get a few years of really dominant ones (ie the Patrick Roy's, Hasek, Brodeur, Curtis Joseph, etc etc), then they kinda retire or their abilities diminish (except for Brodeur who still seems at the top of his game). Then you have a crop of "young guns" who come up through the system and develop, but there is a period where they are developing where you do not have a huge crop of gamebreakers.

The group that always puzled me was the ones that set the league on fire, were solid and very dependable night after night, for one season. Jim Carey, Felix Potvin come to mind. I could never figure out why they just plain old sucked after one full season. It's as if someone said, "Hey, have you tried going high stick side?" "No, have you?" And the next thing you know, they are banished to obscurity.

Traveling Hab · Veteran Member

In Potvin's case, he was lazy. For example, if you look at old tapes of him every time he t-pushes across (fast lateral movement to follow passes) he comes out of his crouch when moving. For a guy as fast as him it didn't matter so much at first, but when coaches start noticing "sloppy" plays like this, and Potvin was guilty of many (going down too soon, over relying on a fast glove hand, etc) they can teach their forwards to exploit it.

This studying of opposition is constantly going on in the NHL, and it becomes a sort of an arms race. "Lazy" goalies who rely on skill and not technique will be studied (especially if they are as good as Potvin or Carey) but not work to improve their technique and find new ways to make saves. Consisten goalies like Brodeur, Kiprusoff, Roy, etc, will constantly adapt their technique to keep up with the forwards who are constantly trying to exploit their weaknesses.