Wednesday, December 12th, 2007 by Adam Wagner
Dany Sabourin better be good
In searching for images of Dany Sabourin purposes, I discovered that there are about three of him in a Penguin uniform. That appears as if it is about to change, as Sabourin will be having his pictures taken on a consistent basis while he is the team’s starting goalie for the starting goalie for the next six to eight weeks because of franchise goalie Marc-Andre Fleury’s high ankle sprain. The question is whether those pictures will be of Sabourin making saves or being scored upon.
Sabourin and Fleury are very different goalies, but they both battle consistency issues. Fans have seen the best of Sabourin on the Pens’ recent road trip (the Calgary and Vancouver games) and the worst (the Philadelphia game). Sabourin is an upright goalie who battles consistency issues, but who Michel Therrien labeled a “top 10 goalie” at the beginning of this season. If Therrien believes in him that much, Sabourin may be able to get the job done.
One of the major differences between Sabourin and Fleury is that Fleury has confidence issues while one of Sabourin’s greatest strengths is his confidence. Sabourin should be able to bounce back from that ridiculous game against the Flyers to put together a nice start against the Senators tomorrow, while the Marc-Andre Fleury meltdown-o-meter would have been on its highest setting if he had been the starter for both games.
The Penguins could use more confidence from, and more confidence in, their goaltender. Maybe having Sabourin back there will help them gain more confidence in themselves as players and appreciate Fleury’s skills more whenever he returns.
Just as importantly, however, is the fact that Sabourin will be gaining NHL experience for a team that definitely expects to be in the playoff hunt. He will be proving to his teammates that he can get the job done, particularly if he succeeds. This could be invaluable come playoff time, as Fleury is shockingly inconsistent and can be utterly awful when he is not “in the zone.” Having a dependable backup, like Jocelyn Thibault provided last season, is an absolute must on a club such as the Penguins and, as long as the offense continues to produce, Sabourin could be that guy (the Penguins should be fine as long as Ty Conklin is not starting).
I’m trying to paint a rosy picture of this situation, but it is probably not great that Fleury will sit out two months. We will see what the Penguins are truly made out of, I guess, as this is the first time that they have been without a legitimate starting “franchise” goalie since Fleury was picked first overall in the 2003 draft.
This is a huge steppingstone in the development of the Penguins as a team and could be fascinating to watch, whether they succeed or fail.
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