Burke grades Flames goaltending: 'Probably a B'
The grades are in.
Speaking with Sportsnet's Tim & Sid on Tuesday, Brian Burke offered up a report card of the Calgary Flames goaltenders.
It's good news for Brian Elliott and Chad Johnson.
"There were stretches where each of the two goaltenders has been excellent for us," said Burke, president of hockey operations for the Flames. "We think we're set in goal going forward, that's our plan. If you give your report card to the goaltenders for the year, and to us for being satisfied with what we had going into the year, you probably give us a 'B' on that."
The Flames finished with the worst goaltending a year ago, when Karri Ramo, Jonas Hiller, and Joni Ortio shared crease time. Over the summer, Calgary brought in two new faces, signing Johnson in free agency and acquiring Elliott from the St. Louis Blues after the team walked away from talks to acquire Ben Bishop from the Tampa Bay Lightning.
With Johnson and Elliott in tow, the Flames have seen a slight uptick, with the team's save rate coming in at .901, but still ranking 24th league-wide and last in the Pacific.
It's been a tale of two seasons in the Calgary crease, with Johnson starting strong and tapering off, and Elliott coming on in the season's later months.
| Time Frame | Goalie | Record | GAA | SV% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct - Nov | Johnson | 7-4-1 | 2.23 | .922 |
| Dec - Feb | Johnson | 9-9-0 | 2.92 | .897 |
| Oct - Nov | Elliott | 3-9-1 | 3.31 | .885 |
| Dec - Feb | Elliott | 9-4-2 | 2.30 | .910 |
Both Johnson and Elliott are unrestricted at season's end.