Sergei Bobrovsky: 8 Reasons He Is the Flyers' Best Goalie

Sergei Bobrovsky had a very tough spring and summer. He struggled down the stretch last season and, despite being named the starter, was sent to the press box during the playoffs. He then saw the Flyers trade away two of their best players to acquire Ilya Bryzgalov and sign him to a nine-year contract.

Bobrovsky was, essentially, replaced.

However, an offseason of work has paid off for the guy they call "Bob". Through 32 games, Bob has at least equaled Bryzgalov, and has actually posted a better save percentage and goals against average so far. He also has picked up wins in five of his nine starts.

Flyers coach Peter Laviolette has shown a tendency to "ride the hot hand" in net. And right now, Bob is playing better than Bryzgalov.

Don't agree? Well, here are eight reasons why the Flyers should sit their high-priced acquisition and ride the sophomore in net.

Quickness

This has nothing to do with a hole in Bryzgalov’s game. There are few goaltenders in the league who possess the level of quickness that Bobrovsky displays on a night-in, night-out basis, particularly in his lower body.

That he can shift those pads across the crease so quickly makes up for his sometimes mediocre puck-tracking. And when he does track the puck, he’s nearly unbeatable down low.

Penalty-Kill Save Percentage

For a penalty kill that has ranked in the bottom half of the NHL for most of the season, a significant upturn in goalie play would be welcome change. Only three teams have a worse save percentage when down a man than the Flyers.

The primary culprit has been Bryzgalov, whose .819 shorthanded save percentage is among the worst in the league.

Bobrovsky has actually been very strong when facing power plays this season. His .900 shorthanded save percentage ranks among the top 20 in the league and he has allowed only six power-play goals against in nine starts.

An increase in his playing time could precede a marked improvement in the Flyers’ penalty kill.

Expected Improvement

This is something that we’ve already seen the effects of. Last year, Bobrovsky often seemed to hectically roam the area around the net like a child on a sugar rush. This season, Bob has appeared significantly calmer in net, content to play a more positional game of hockey.

Similar to Bob’s improved positioning, we can expect all the rest of his skills to improve over time as well. Getting him more playing time now will only accelerate this process.

Winning

Of the two goaltenders, Bobrovsky has the best winning percentage this season. Even with Bryzgalov’s recent six-game winning streak, he still hasn’t been able to equal Bob’s winning percentage.

Beyond that, Bob has finished eight of his nine starts, only being relieved in the 9-8 loss to Winnipeg in October. Bryzgalov has been pulled three times in that same time frame.

And, outside of his two appearances against Winnipeg, Bob has not allowed more than three goals in any appearance.

More Goal Scoring (The Good Kind)

The Flyers have played better when Bobrovsky is in net. The proof? The Flyers have scored an average of 3.06 goals per game with Bryzgalov in net. With Bobrovsky in net, the Flyers have scored an average of 3.50 goals per game. No, 0.44 doesn’t seem like a huge difference, but over the course of an 82-game season, that is 36 or 37 more goals.

Bryzgalov's Continued Struggles

Without a doubt, this year has not gone as planned for Ilya Bryzgalov. Despite being among the top 10 in the NHL in wins, in the non-cumulative categories (save percentage, goals against average), he ranks in the bottom half of the league.

He has at times looked disconnected from the game. As Bill Meltzer of Hockeybuzz has noted, there have been multiple times this year when weird bounces have gotten through Bryzgalov simply due to lack of vigilance on his part. That is unacceptable for a goaltender of his pay grade.

Brygalov's Injury

This is something that we really don’t know the extent of (though we may find out on 24/7, episode 2). After being held out of the third period against the Tampa Bay Lightning a couple weeks ago, Bryzgalov was right back in the net for the next game. Since, he’s had a good game (Washington), a solid game (Colorado) and a very poor game (Boston).

We have no real way of knowing if whatever injury he suffered against Tampa (presumably to his groin) is still affecting him. However, when you have Bobrovsky playing so well, why force Bryzgalov in there?

The Inevitable Shutout

In 66 NHL games, Bobrovsky has won 34 games, totaled a 2.61 goals against average and .914 save percentage and zero shutouts. Rarely do goalies enter the league with such numbers and take so long to earn a shutout.

Bob is bound to put a goose egg up on the scoreboard sooner rather than later. And getting that monkey off his back will be a significant boon to his confidence. Confident goalies are dangerous. In a good way.