Boston Bruins: Tuukka Rask Not Ranked in NHL Top-10 Goaltenders in Questionable List
Tuukka Rask is one of the elite goalies in the National Hockey League. Despite having a poor season last year – largely due to a very shaky (and that’s putting it lightly) blueline in front of him – Rask still has top-10 credentials. According to the NHL Network, however, Rask simply isn’t a top-10 goalie in the league right now.
And since you've all loved these lists, here's NHL Network's Top 10 goalies "right now." pic.twitter.com/WxCbQOIDs7
— Mark Lazerus (@MarkLazerus) August 22, 2016
As mentioned, Rask had an off-season last year. Among goalies with at least 50 games played last season, Rask ranked 12th in wins, 16th in goals against average and 16th in save percentage. Even with those numbers, however, Rask still ranks among the top-10 in each goaltending category over the last three seasons.
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Over the last three seasons, Tuukka Rask has a 2.31 goals against average, a .922 save percentage, and a 101-58-14 record to go along with 14 shutouts. His save percentage ranks sixth among goalies with at least 100 starts; his goals against average ranks ninth among goalies with at least 100 starts; and he recorded the sixth most shutouts among goalies with at least 100 starts.
Martin Jones had an incredible season with the San Jose Sharks last year. After finally being given the chance to be a starting goaltender, Jones led the Sharks to a matchup against the Pittsburgh Penguins in the Stanley Cup Finals. Despite losing, Jones still showed that he can hang with the best players in the league….The issue is the fact that he’s only played in 99 NHL games in his entire career, logging 5632 minutes of ice time over that span.
Tuukka Rask, on the other hand, has played in 330 games, and 18,902 minutes. There’s no doubt that Martin Jones looks like the real deal, but placing him above Tuukka Rask in terms of goaltender rankings seems a bit premature given his one season of success (that isn’t to say that he wasn’t a successful backup in Los Angeles prior to his starting job).
The list also places Braden Holtby above Carey Price. It’s clear that Holtby is among the best goalies in the league. He may even be a top-two goalie in the entire world, but there’s no possible explanation for having him ranked above Carey Price after just one successful (albeit very successful) season.
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Players likely don’t pay too much, if any attention to lists like this. If they do, it will likely light a fire under them, more than mess with their psyche. Rask is still a top-10 goalie in the NHL. The 29-year-old will look to prove that during the 2016-17 season despite being set to play behind a poor blueline once again.