The NHL's recent rule trends, post-2004-lockout, toward offense have seen a reactionary and renewed focus for teams on defense.
One aspect of that renewed focus is on goaltenders, and specifically, on their size.
It seems that over the last 20 years, teams league-wide have been looking more and more toward larger goalies to man the pipes.
With the increased traffic around the net in today's game, there is a premium placed on the ability to fight for space and to cover as much net as possible. Is this trend toward larger goalies here to stay, or is it just a fad that happens to have stolen the moment?
According to an article by Bill Meltzer appearing on the International Ice Hockey Federation website, this has been an ongoing process for almost 2 decades, and it doesn't appear to be changing anytime soon.
"The average NHL and Olympic goaltender in 2014 is roughly four centimeters taller than his peers of 20 years ago," he wrote.
In the mid-to-late 1990s, the average NHL goaltender stood right around 182 centimeters. Back then, the ranks of top NHL goaltenders included many players who would be considered undersized today: Mike Richter, Dominik Hasek, John Vanbiesbrouck, Curtis Joseph, Ed Belfour, Chris Osgood, Mike Vernon and even 174 centimeter (5-foot-8) Arturs Irbe were among the standout goalies of the time. Superstar net minder Patrick Roy was listed at 183 centimeters (an even six feet tall), which today would be considered on the smaller end of an "averaged-size goaltender."
At this year's Olympics, the average goaltender was about 6-foot-1, with the average current NHL goaltenders height 1/3 of a centimeter taller.
Dallas Stars general manager Jim Nill sees a correlation between the long-ago perception that bigger players weren't as athletic and today's renewed appreciation of larger goaltenders.
"The goaltender trend is heading towards bigger goalies, but I believe it is more a reflection that the bigger goalies have become as athletic or better, as the normal size goalie. In the past, bigger athletes were often not as 'athletic' as normal sized athletes. This seems to be a trend in all sports. But nowadays, athletes overall are bigger, faster, and more skilled. Around hockey, there will always be the 'normal-size' goalies who are stars such as Lundqvist, Quick, etc.., but they are also superior athletes and also have what I term great 'goalie sense,' the same as forwards/defensemen who have great sense," said Nill.
The Stars boast one of the NHL's biggest set of goaltenders, with starter Kari Lehtonen clocking in at 6-foot-3 and back-up Anders Linback a healthy 6-foot-6.
Neil Little, a scout for the Philadelphia Flyers, says that, all things being equal, the larger goaltender will eventually get the nod in his evaluations.
"I am traveling the hockey globe all year looking for draft-eligible goalies and size really does affect my decision making and overall feeling about a prospect's future chances in pro hockey. I rarely stamp my approval on anyone 6-foot and under simply because you can find a bigger kid with the same skill set who is 6'2 and above," said Little.
"With that said, there's no question that some of the best goalies to play - and some who are still playing - are smaller goalies. There are exceptions to the current trend of bigger is better, but for the most part, I would say that the trend is headed away from the small goalie. If you are under or around six feet, you must be able to move like Jonathan Quick, and consistently be the best player on the ice."
It seems to be a refrain among those in the league that, while size is preferable, no one would turn down a player or prospect with skill and heart simply because they were smaller than the ideal size.
There is also, of course, a cutoff point for size. As Meltzer points out, "there are no 6-foot-9 or bigger goaltenders on the horizon."
He also makes the point that there may be a "market correction" of sorts sometime in the near future, with the focus moving back toward average height goaltenders. Professional sports are copy-cat endeavors after all, with successful organizations having their methods picked apart and retooled by almost every other team.
All it takes is one extremely successful average-sized goaltender for NHL teams around the league to switch their focus and reverse the current trend.
