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There was a time, not long ago, when I couldn't place a current player among the "greatest " of all time. The eras are different, the competition in the good Original Six was much more ferocious and desperate than we have now. The equipment now is better, but the talent level from game to game is not.
So, how do we compare Patrick Roy with Terry Sawchuk?
Every great player, no matter what era, has the ability to raise their game to the highest level possible. It's not their fault they didn't play against other players from another time. Guy Lafleur, Larry Robinson, Bryan Tottier, Mike Bossy, Denis Potvin, Wayne Gretzky, Ray Bourque, Marcel Dionne and current players like Mario Lemieux, Steve Yzerman and Joe Sakic ... you get the picture. They are all impact players, difference makers and they could all play during any era. These types of players have passion, skill, hunger and will.
Which bring us back to Roy and Sawchuk. I ran into former Blackhawks defenseman Reg Fleming at the Hawks Alumni Golf Outing and he was sickened to hear Dominik Hasek being mentioned as the greatest goalie ever after winning the Cup. Reg is a very proud Original Sixer. He was on the Hawks' last Cup team back in 1961, and he played with great goalies like Glenn Hall and against ones like Sawchuk. As we bantered back and forth, bringing in opinions from other tables, he listed Jacques Plante, Hall and Sawchuk as his favorites. In the end, he had to admit that Roy belonged right there as No. 1 of all time. Ask Barry Melrose what he thinks and there is NO hesitation -- Roy is the best.
Roy will play in his record tying 971st regular season start Tuesday against Edmonton, tying the immortal Sawchuk, who played 21 seasons in the NHL. Roy shares or owns nine NHL records, including 518 regular-season wins and 148 playoff wins, not to mention 12 seasons of at least 30 or more wins. When you add in the most important accomplishments -- four Stanley Cups and three Conn Smythes -- you definitely have the greatest goalie of all time.
Other notes around the NHL;
With Darryl Sutter pulling Vesa Toskala after allowing only two goals against vs. Vancouver on Monday and Miikka Kipprusoff clearly struggling, it is absolutely time for San Jose's new ownership group to start communicating better with management and get back on the horn with Don Meehan, who represents Evgeni Nabokov.
I am hearing that Fred Brathwaite will be back in goal by Thursday for the Blues. Congrats to rookie Curtis Sanford for beating the Dallas Stars in his first start. To every goalie toiling around the bottom of the minor leagues: NEVER give up hope, just stay highly motivated to reach the ultimate, like Curtis has done.
How about the play of Jeff Hackett in the Habs' net? Let's just hope this character veteran can stay healthy. You have to think the bad luck is all gone by now, and if so, he could really help out a couple of teams for the next few years.
This week's top five:
|  | | Lalime |
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5. Patrick Lalime, Ottawa Senators
3 GP, 2-1-0, 1.35 GAA, .943 save percentage
He quietly goes about his business in the nation's capital, playing three straight 2-1 games. He lost the opener against a very strong Martin Brodeur, then beat the rival Leafs in Toronto (22 savess and first star) and dumped Phoenix in Ottawa (26 saves, second star). The time is now for the technically sound goalie to go from being a strong regular-season guy to a leader through a tough playoff series, helping the Senators prove to the hockey world they can win the Stanley Cup in the next few years.
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|  | | Khabibulin |
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4. Nikolai Khabibulin, Tampa Bay Lightning
5 GP, 4-0-1, 2.73 GAA, .885 save percentage
He would have been higher, based on the Lightning's hot start, but we haven't yet seen the best of Nik, yet. He has gone undefeated, but just wait until he gets real hot! He was a 4-2 winner in Manhattan on Monday, but he only had to make 18 saves (third star). He also won 8-5 vs. Atlanta and 5-1 vs. Carolina (21 saves and third star). His tie came in Pittsburgh. He is clearly a difference maker in this league and a future Vezina Trophy winner.
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|  | | Roy |
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3. Patrick Roy, Colorado Avalanche
4 GP, 2-1-1, 1.23 GAA, .955 save percentage
It has been a rock-solid start for the future Hall of Famer. He's put last year's Game 7 loss at Detroit behind him and is looking ahead at trying to win his fifth Cup. His only loss was at the hands of the Bruins. He made 35 saves in the 2-1 loss. He started the season tying Dallas 1-1 (24 ssaves) and beating both L.A. and San Jose on the road, winning 4-1 and 3-1. He combined to make 47 saves in the victories.
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|  | | Kolzig |
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2. Olaf Kolzig, Washington Capitals
5 GP, 3-2-0, 2.01 GAA, .924 save percentage
Last year was an aberration for the big guy. He played with ankle and knee injuries, but never made excuses while struggling through one of his worst seasons in the NHL. He's back, and so are the Caps -- if they can stay out of the penalty box. He was outstanding in relief of Craig Billington in Dallas making 21 saves in the 5-2 loss. While he had some unlucky breaks in the 3-1 loss at Philadelphia (30 saves), he was outstanding in a 2-1 win at Carolina (37 saves) and the 2-1 win on Long Island (35 saves, third star).
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|  | | Fernandez |
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1. Manny Fernandez, Minnesota Wild
3 GP, 3-0-0, 1.01 GAA, .967 save percentage
Manny started the season the way he had to -- win and act like a No. 1 goalie. He has gone 3-0-0 with a 1.01 GAA, stopping nearly 97 percent of the shots he has faced. He was second star in the 3-1 win vs. Dallas (33 saves) and fist star in the 5-1 drubbing of the Bruins (26 saves). He also was the only goalie to gain serious consideration for Player of the Week, which was won by Mario Lemieux.
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Darren Pang, a former goaltender with the Chicago Blackhawks, is a hockey analyst for ESPN. His goalie rankings appear every other week in Net Effect.
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