Bryzgalov

[Beareo]

I'm trying to get a handle on The Bryz.
He had fair stats last year: 33 Wins, 2.48 GAA, 0.909 SV%, 6 SO

Everyone seems almost certain he is going to 'bounce' back this year. My question is why?

I'm more inclined to think he will put up the same stat line as last year... especially since the defense on PHI looks alittle desperate due to all the injuries and the Carle trade.

You can argue that 3 of hes last 5 years he put up excellent numbers (W, GAA, SV%, SO) -- but those 3 years he was in PHO. It could have just been the system, right? Mike Smith's numbers last year put him in the top 5 of goalies.

What is it about Bryz that I don't see? Why do people see him as an Elite goalie?
The Bears and the PHI pressure aren't going to go away...

[Pengwin7]

Almost every goalie struggles in a new location/environment.
Yes, the pressure is one thing (and that takes a while to shake) but learning to read the way your defensemen move and the type of shots that will get through is a completely different beast.

Bryz has now had a year to acclimate himself to the Philly system. He's got a year to play with Timonen, Grossman, Coburn, Meszaros. You are right that there is some concern with the new defensemen (they have to replace Meszaros, Carle is gone, Pronger likely not back).

That said, Philly's forwards are going to be excellent defensively. They've got a lot of aggressive forwards and that will limit opposing scoring. Think of where players like Brayden Schenn and Couturier will contribute this year vs. last year. Another year matured will be great.

Personally, I rank Bryzgalov as my 2nd favourite goalie for the coming year (behind Lundqvist & ahead of Rinne AND Quick).
Last year Bryz had a bit of competition in Bobrovsky, but Bob is gone.
He has little back-up competition in Leighton.

Bryz was AMAZING in March last year... which is a good sign.
Sure, he stunk in the playoffs series vs. Pittsburgh & New Jersey - but, guess what, the NHL regular season isn't just against PIT & NJ.
So - I'm not worried.

Timonen-Coburn-Grossman-L.Schenn... that's a very good front four (Coburn, Grossman, and Schenn are monsters size-wise).
With Philly's defensive minded forwards - I think they are prime to be one of the better defensive clubs in the NHL.

My 2 cents.

(FWIW, Bryzgalov was my 2nd pick, #27 overall, in my DobberEntry league draft - so I'm not just chewing it here... I invested in my faith in him.)

[Skin Blues]

They didn't have Pronger last year either. It's not an additional loss from the 2011-12 defense corps. Meszaros is out for a while but they're not playing yet so the % of team games he misses is going down every time the season gets delayed. They also added Grossman near the end of last year so they'll get a full season out of him, and a full season of Luke Schenn. If anything the defense has improved over last season. Bryz was absolutely brutal for much of the year but still posted respectable end of season totals. I'd look for an improvement as long as he can remain somewhat consistent. At worst you'll get a lot of Wins and Shutouts.

[Beareo]

Hey Pengwin7 and Blue Skins,
thanks for the reply. I do appreciate the input.

Funny enough after I wrote this post i got an offer for Skinner+Crawford for Bryz.
I'm having a hard time letting go of Skinner -- especially since hes been working out with Roberts all summer (brings back memories of Stamkos crazy year after the Roberts training program). Obviously i'm not comparing Stamkos to Skinner but I am curious to see what Skinner can do this year.

Would you go for this -- i was thinking of countering with a Semin+Crawford just to see if he'd bite on that first. (my team and stats are in my signature)

I think the view in my league right now is alot of people are unsure about Bryz .. and assume he'll put up the same numbers as last year. Which was what i was thinking until I posted this and read dobber's guide predictions on Bryz. Now i'm thinking hes a great buy low guy... Semin+Crawford may work?

[hockeymanG23]

Semin/Crawford for Bryz would be a huge win for you. I would avoid the trade with Skinner myself.

[Front89]

As a Flyers fan, the issue for Bryz that I've seen most is with the aggressive go for broke system Lavy employs offensively. When the Flyers execute it well, all is good, but far too often they struggle and you have games like the Pens and Devils series last playoffs where where the F and D get caught and allow 2-1, 3-2 and even straight breakways on Bryz with predictable results...

Bryz appears best suited for a tighter defensive and team concept. In PHX, he had that and was stellar most nights because he only had to make the first save usually and his D was there to sweep the puck and clean the porch...PHX also has excellent defensive F and a good D corps; better than the Flyers with players like Briere or Jagr who have been exposed defensively and the larger D-men like Grossman & Schenn who play positional D and are not very mobile otherwise...

Coburn is the best guy IMO; Timonen plays "older" every year and I think this might be the last rodeo...I do not have the high hopes for the Flyers D as others without even talking about the #5 and #6 guys. I agree with the original poster that I see Bryz doing roughly the same this season and more possibly worse than better

[letangerang58]

Semin/Crawford for Bryz would be a huge win for you. I would avoid the trade with Skinner myself.

I agree, Semin/Crawford would be a deal for Bryz.


I don't see Bryz as elite. He might be top 10 but there are quite a few goalies I'd rather have over him. I owned him his last season in PHX and I was unimpressed that season. I think his stats in PHX were more because of Tippet's system and not as much Bryzgalov's skill. Also consider that Mike Smith (a player that couldn't hold his spot in Tampa Bay 2 years ago) bettered Bryz's best season in PHX significantly. IMO he will improve but not by much.