The
entertaining and enigmatic Ilya Bryzgalov is back in the NHL, but can he turn
his career and the Oilers’ season around?
By Marcus White
 |
| David E. Klutho/SI |
Bryzgalov is looking to prove that he is a capable starting
goalie after a disastrous two-year stint in Philadelphia. Following the signing
of a nine-year, $51 million contract with the Flyers prior to the 2011-12
season, Bryzgalov quickly went from prophet to punchline. Exacerbated by his
quirky appearance on HBO’s 24/7 in the lead-up to the Winter Classic, Bryzgalov
eventually succumbed to the pressures of his gargantuan contract and unique
expectations placed on a Flyers goalie. He posted the worst numbers of his
career last season in Philly, and given the Flyers’ salary-cap crunch,
Philadelphia bought out Bryzgalov’s contract this past offseason.
Not all of the failures in Philadelphia were Bryzgalov’s
fault, however. After losing Chris Pronger to a career-ending injury 13 games
into his Flyers’ tenure, Bryzgalov was asked to stand tall behind a patchwork
of blueliners missing its most important piece. In a new defensive system
without the stalwart group of defensemen that he had in Phoenix, coupled with
the massive pressures of his contract to succeed Ron Hextall, it’s not
surprising that the Bryzgalov experiment was a failure in Philadelphia.
But in signing with the Oilers, Bryzgalov returns to the
Western Conference, and the Pacific Division, where he had his greatest success
as a goalie in Phoenix. While the Oilers’ divisional and conference rivals have
seen pretty significant turnover since Bryzgalov signed in Philly, the cores of
the conference’s major powers, such as San Jose, Vancouver, and Chicago, remain
largely unchanged.
The Oilers are hoping that a return to familiar surroundings
will bring the best out of Bryzgalov, and that he will provide a steady
presence in the crease. Solid goaltending is something that the Oilers have
lacked all season. None of Richard Bachman, Devan Dubnyk or Jason LaBarbera
have goals-against-averages under three, and only Bachman has a save percentage
north of the “Mendoza Line” of .900. As was the case with Bryzgalov in
Philadelphia, however, those numbers aren’t just a reflection of the
goaltender.
Edmonton boasts a below-average defensive core and have
allowed 272 shots on goal this season, 10th-most in the league. Their blueline
got much weaker when Ladislav Smid was traded to division-rival Calgary in an
effort to clear salary cap space in order to sign Bryzgalov. Additionally,
Bryzgalov’s career save percentage of .913 isn’t substantially better than
Devan Dubnyk’s, with the incumbent Edmonton starter posting a career .911 save percentage.
Edmonton’s playoff hopes are now contingent upon Bryzgalov
providing a significant upgrade in net over their current options. The Oilers
were projected by many to contend for a playoff spot and finally see the
efforts of a long rebuild pay off, led by their strong complement of offensive
stars such as Taylor Hall and Jordan Eberle. But, as this season has shown,
firepower up front is nothing without steady play on defense and in goal. The
Oilers find their playoff hopes on life support, 14 points out of a playoff
spot as of this writing. There is a lot of hockey to be played, but in a very
deep conference in division, the Oilers have dug themselves a deep hole.
In returning to the comforts of the Western Conference and
Pacific Division, it’s possible that Bryzgalov could see a return to form as an
Oiler. But with a deep hole to climb out of in order to contend for a playoff
spot and the Oilers’ weak complement of defensemen, the Oilers are asking/
hoping for too much from Bryzgalov. Unless he can play the best hockey of his
career, the road to redemption for Bryzgalov and the Oilers will stop far short
of an Edmonton’s first playoff berth in eight seasons.
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