Goalies Being Hit Hardest by Lockout terms Marc-Andre Fleury -NHL Special
A lockout is never a good thing in any way, period. But there are those who are able to make meet ends in terms of continuing to play and continue to get a salary, but according to Pittsburgh Penguins top goalie, Marc-Andre Fleury, the ones in front of the
net are the ones that get hit the hardest.
It is not surprising to hear that the least amount of players to go abroad are the goalies, since basically all foreign teams have goalies intact are not looking for more of a change in front of their net. Goalies need chemistry with the team defenders and
already having achieved that lessens the chances that foreign teams would want to change it.
Fleury, like many goaltenders, is looking forward to the puck dropping once the National Hockey League (NHL) and Players’ Association settles their differences, but nothing can be said about when that just might happen. He is also looking towards playing
with veteran goalie, Tomas Vokoun, who signed on to a two-year extension with the Penguins over the offseason and will be backing the youngster in net next season.
Brent Johnson was the back for Penguins prior to Tomas Vokoun being signed on following his drop from the Washington Capitals, and Fleury is aspiring to make as good of a relationship with Vokoun as he had with Johnson.
"With [Johnson], it was easy, because I could always talk [to him]," Fleury said, according to the Post-Gazette. "Like, between periods, walk in and go see him and ask him about 'this goal,' and whether I should do something different.”
One of the biggest disadvantages that any goalie has during a situation like the lockout is lack of practice. Fleury has been participating in various charity events ever since, but it has not been anywhere close as to the intensity found in the NHL, which
he fears might hurt him once the regular season gets going.
"Hopefully, everything works well [with the CBA negotiations] this week, and they have a good talk and everything settles down pretty quick," Fleury added. "But if it's going to last longer, I might throw my name out there to see what's available."
Marc-Andre Fleury is a former first overall draft pick, one of the few goalies who have been picked right into the draft, by the Pittsburgh Penguins and maintains a career save percentage of .909 along with 2.68 goals-against average.
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