ESPN isn't thrilled with Toronto Maple Leafs goaltending tandem

Is ESPN being fair to the Leafs tandem?

HockeyFeed
HockeyFeed
Published 2 years ago
ESPN isn't thrilled with Toronto Maple Leafs goaltending tandem
Complex

The Frederik Andersen era officially ended in Toronto this offseason, as the Maple Leafs elected not to bring him back for a 6th season in the crease. 

In his stead, GM Kyle Dubas inked goaltender Petr Mrazek to a three year contract. He'll be joining forces with Jack Campbell, who will be looking to build upon his stellar 17-3-2 record last season that saw him record a  2.15 goals against average and a .921 save percentage. 

But according to ESPN's Greg Wyshynski, don't expect the Mrazek/Campbell tandem to be among the NHL's best. In fact, he ranked them No. 19 out of the 32 tandems. 

Check out his reasoning: 

"Campbell put up solid traditional stats (.921 save percentage and a stellar 17-3-2 record) behind an underrated defensive team in Toronto. Mrazek arrives from Carolina, taking over for Andersen. The Leafs actually finished sixth in the Clear Sight Analytics preseason goalie rankings, mostly due to Mrazek's occasional goals-saved-above-average streaks. 

"You know him over the years: He gets on a roll and he can run hot. But he can run equally as cold," said Valiquette.

Toronto has itself a good regular-season tandem, but Valiquette thinks that's the limit.

"That's not a Stanley Cup-winning tandem. I'd imagine that Toronto goes along with this as long as it can, and then makes a change before the playoffs," he said.

Another goalie expert we surveyed felt that No. 19 was a reach. "I'm not a fan of Toronto tandem at all," he said. "Campbell concerns me after 30 games, and Mrazek is a guy that always seems to get hurt at inopportune times."

Last year with Carolina, Mrazek posted a record of a 6-2-3 record with three shutouts, a 2.06 goals against average and a .911 save percentage. In 275 career regular season games with the Detroit Red Wings, Philadelphia Flyers and Hurricanes, Mrazek sports a 128-96-31 record with a 2.59 goals against average, a .911 save percentage and 24 shutouts. 



Source: ESPN