Boston Bruins: Why fans can be confident with Jaroslav Halak in net

Not many teams around the NHL have the luxury of having a reliable backup goalie. In many cases teams are forced to rely on their starter for the majority of games, but not the Bruins.

The Boston Bruins have been able to significantly reduce the workload for Tuukka Rask since bringing Jaroslav Halak to the team prior to the 2018-19 season. While Rask is still the starter, Halak has taken over a large portion of games, giving the Bruins a 1A and 1B goaltending tandem.

Halak’s path to the Bruins was filled with ups and downs. His career started with the Montreal Canadiens during the 2006-07 season, but was eventually traded to the St. Louis Blues after the 2009-10 season. Halak bounced around a lot during the 2013-14 season. The Blues traded him to the Buffalo Sabres, but he was traded to the Washington Capitals before ever getting a chance to dress for the Sabres. He appeared in 12 games for Capitals to end the season, and was traded once again, this time to the New York Islanders. Halak remained with the Islanders for four seasons until eventually signing in Boston.

It didn’t take long for Halak to become a fan favourite in Boston, playing his way into a more significant role early on last season while Rask struggled out of the gate and then took a few days away from the team. In fact, a small but vocal group of fans have even called for Halak to replace Rask as the top goaltender on the team. While that might be a bit of a stretch, Halak has definitely earned the right to get a bigger share of the crease.

During his tenure with the Bruins, Halak has compiled a record of 24-12-4 in 40 starts with the Bruins, and is off to a solid 2-1-0 start this season. He actually owns a better goals against average and save percentage than Rask since the start of the 2018-19 season. His .925 Sv% and 2.29 GAA are both a touch above what Rask has done, while also holding a slight edge in shutouts over that time as well.

Rask proved his worth during last season’s playoff run, but a portion of that success is likely due to the extra rest that he had throughout the regular season. With the way Halak was playing, the Bruins didn’t feel the need to give Rask a heavy workload.

Halak has given the Bruins the luxury of a backup goalie who is not only capable of filling in, but can even steal a game when needed. While other teams tend to struggle with their backup in net, the Bruins and their fans can be confident about getting a win when Halak is controlling the crease.