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Originally Posted by Blah_Teggie
Is anybody else confused as to why Ryan Miller is getting all the goaltending hype? Is it cuz everybody wants an American to win Vezina and Hart?
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For me it's Miller/Bryz>>>>>>>>the rest. The Vezina has essentially become the most valuable goaltender as well since goalies never win the hart, the last one I remember was Jose Theodore in 2002? Also last season an American did win the Vezina, Tim Thomas.
Both Brodeur and Miller have a similar winning percentage but Millers gets his team at least a single point 86% of his starts while Brodeur is at 67%. Buffalo allows 31.4 shots/game (T-8th most) while New Jersey allows 27 (2nd least). New Jersey plays a trapping style of play while Buffalo will give up a lot of quality chances (mostly because they know their goalie will bail them out). Offensively, NJ has more high-end talent than Buffalo (Parise, Elias, Zajac and Kovie vs Connolly, Vanek, Roy and Pominville) and it shows. No player on Buffalo has more than 28 goals or 69 points. Also while the Atlantic may have more superstars, the Northeast has 4 of 5 teams going to the playoffs while the Atlantic has 3.
While Brodeur had a good season after an injury and was solid, but he played on a better team and had several rough patches. Watching Miller and Bryzgalov play though, they both consistently stood on their heads and carried their team.