Who is in goal?

Is it just me or is it possible we've seen the last of Marc Denis as a starter this season? The guy has gotten so many chances and it is obvious after Tuesday night's game Torts' confidence in him is so low, perhaps he just gives Johan Holmqvist the last five starts.

You get the feeling Torts always has believed Holmqvist has more upside than Denis. And, really, Denis hasn't done much to disprove that notion. Funny thing about Denis. Every time you thought maybe, just maybe, he was ready to turn a corner, he took a step back.

Perhaps it is just the pressure of expectations. He certainly didn't have much when he was with the Blue Jackets. Anything he did was gravy as was anything the team did in the standings. He is with a better team with the Lightning with more weapons. The only difference seems to be the expectations.

Worse, we know it is in him to do it. We have seen him play well. We have seen him play spectacular at times. Where it goes when the pressure is on is anyone's guess. It is too bad too. Marc Denis works hard, can't take that away from him. He cares deeply. He just could not turn that into success.

It is going to be interesting to see what happens over the summer. His $2.9-million cap hit is a lot to carry. Do you package him in a deal and hope someone can take his salary off your hands? Do you come to camp and give him a shot to win a spot? Only if you are prepared to send him to the minors if he fails and perhaps get a team to pick him up on waivers like Sean Burke.

The Marc Denis story already is 1 season old but it is just beginning.

      

Comments

Nice to know the world revolves around you.

[keith]

I have read and enjoyed contributing to this blog all year long. This is my last entry and last time I'm going to read the entries.I want to enjoy the Play offs in my own way, and not be popping Rolaids after reading anothers venomous entry. Cannot stand the negativity and inanity that has almost turned something I enjoy into a passion to find something wrong. The key word is ALMOST.
Go Bolts.
Phantom....enjoyed the contretemps.

[Phantom]

Sven, nobody, NOBODY, in this league should be paid 20% of the team payroll. That's just asinine.
You're right about winning the Cup and Brad being surrounded by mediocrity but, his agent claimed he was worth all those Richie riches by making those around him soooo much better. I'd like to see it, in the Western Conference, whilst we get fiscally, defensively sound and another goalie who can paint a brick wall on his facemask (hopefully from within this organization.). I might whine less if we were smart with our money, investing in sniper and goalie coaches for Norfolk......

Brad Richards is good, very danged good, but he's no icon of the Sport and should be paid accordingly.
The fact that he and others accept the insane bucks is an indictment on their integrity and our stupidity. Do you care if their great-grandkids never have to work? Wake up and crunch the numbers.

Wow, way off task here. OK I'll go out on a limb here and suggest we wear out Holmer by playing him back-to-back and beating the Caps like a rented Camaro for payback. I think I'd shave my head if there were a 1-0 win for us tonight...

[Sven]

I think that wuss had a huge hand in winning us a Cup. If he had a winger with him who could score, I think people would be complaining less.

Brad is a WUSS!

[Bolt's Fan]

Read the SI article about Luongo and weep! SHOULDA, WOULDA, COULDA!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Andrzej]

I remember when I was a schoolboy, I was a great fan of a table tennis (ping-pong). Often I stood at school an hour or two longer to play with my friends. Unfortunately, no matter how much I tried and practiced, never I was better than an average player. The reason? My reflex! It always was failing. I was born a slow-thinker, and could not react enough quickly.

So much has been said about hard work of Marc Denis and his failure. Isn't the time to admit that his problem to be a good goalie is his limited ability to respond enough quick? If this is the right reason (and only medical examination can answer to it), he will never improve his performance.

[Signgirl]

Brad doesn't fight are you kidding? He has to maintain an attitude to win the only other award he can win ever again. The Lady Byng. You know, the wuss award?

Ok. I am not bashing Richards, but has anyone ever see him really check someone?? Has he ever been in a fight??

I guess Arty is red lighting as much as Feds, Prospal, Craig et al.
What would be the difference? About 8 minutes a game of energy and excitement that the new "new grit" guys were supposed to bring that we have yet to see.At least he gets the blood pumping instead of some of our guys who are seem scared to get their handbags knocked out of their hands.

[Fred]

Thanks, Phantom, for giving some credit to Feds. We bemoan a lack of 'grit' and trade for it at the deadline but forget that Feds throws his body around every shift and consistently wins the puck along the boards. Big Dog had it right on the radio yesterday; put Feds in the slot where he can use that wicked wrister of his and he'll light the lamp.

Interesting to see the calls for Arty again...check out his progress in the Superleague playoffs. Wait, he's scratched almost every game. That'll help our scoring next year.

Oh dear! Damien, you really put the cat among the pigeons with this one! As Eric Idle so appropriately says as he is meeting his demise in "Life of Brian" .....you got to look on the bright side!
Career years for Boyler, Vinny and Marty. Career high goals for Ritchie and Kuba (Of course maybe some career lows too!)
The emergence of Vinny as a true top five star in the league. Prospects blossomed from the AHL with Ranger, Craig and Tarns getting muy ice time. Obrien and Ward are looking like good moves.Perrin looks like he may be able to actually buy a house in Tampa next year! The Roy circus coming back to town (he's fun to watch for 2-3 minutes a game) Iron man Sarich goes through yet another season without missing a game. You get the idea...!
Oh and don't forget, each game played is a game closer to the return (hopefully) of Arty!
So come on Bolts fans, eat the Rolaids, lower the BP and root like hell for the boys. We are not Hockeytowm yet! If they win out, we're in with as good a chance as anyone. Just hope we don't have to face Ottawa in the first round. Atlanta, Jersey, Pittsburgh we can do.

[Phantom]

Ooops, the source I mis-cited for the wise blood pressure saving advice was Keith. Sorry, the puck went right over my stick on that one.
Thanks Keith....

Phantom I agree with a lot you have to say! Yes Hockey Bay is upset. We do want red lights flashing on the opposition. FEDS has been spectacular in many games. HOCKEY BAY DOES NEED A GOALIE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Phantom]

There is a disturbance in the Force. Much anger in HockeyBay with very high expectations.
I shot my fingers off too soon on this topic in the previous and humorous playoff thread. I've calmed down now and will take the sage advice our learned colleague Kevin, I believe, left on another thread; to relax, and enjoy what we have.
Go back to the expectation we had in the 90's where we anticipate ice folly, and any heroism beyond that is gravy. For me it beats getting all frothy and aerated, any road. Go Bolts, Go goalies, Go Richie, Go Boyler,......please, just go.

I must end with a positive:
Ruslan Fedotenko has been stellar this year. Now, now, I know his point production is in an off year; but he was a checking, hitting, digging, pain in the butt for other teams all season.
This effort came on the heels of hip surgery, and I can relate from personal experience, the hip labrum in not to be fooled with.
I'm thinking this unsung hero played in some measure of pain all season and didn't moan one peep about it while he went about his business, and withstood our (my) squabbling about the absence of lighting the red lights.

Feds, I'm damn glad you're with us, man.

[Glenn B, Sweden]

As a Swedish goalie fan it's nice to see the likes of Holmqvist, Hedberg, Tellqvist and Lundkvist make it to the NHL. Unfortunately most of them probably won't be a top notch starter apart from Lundkvist who in two years time I think will have established himself as a top 3 goalie in the NHL.

Just out of interest, who's decision was it to trade Modin and Norrena for Denis? Was it Columbus who had scouted Norrena and considered him a better choice than Holmqvist or was it TB who decided to send Norrena up north due to Holmqvist's earlier experiences in NA? In hindsight the best choice would've been to have kept both Norrena and Holmqvist.

I certainly hope that TB takes one of the last three spots in the playoffs in the Eastern Conference. Go Holmer!

Denis SUCKS!!! Get him out of Tampa please....

[Joe]

Feaster really screwed the franchise with this trade. Lost our best second line scorer AND Norrena in this trade. He has a 2.74 GA, .906 SP and a winning record for a bad team. We have a gutless puke with an untradable contract. And Campbell threatens a payroll reduction which punishes the fans for the failures of his GM. Feaster wouldn't know premier goaltending if Kipprosoff rang his doorbell.

[Signgirl]

So I say take that all you people who yelled at Grahame last year. Atleast he cared and gave his all. He wasn't successful because of the lack of defense surrounding him. Not his fault.
So now here we are with a goalie who in my mind is a piece of s***. He seems to give up after a couple of goals. Homer should have started last night. The only reason they scored after him was because it was an empty net. We have a lot of problems with this team. We need a new and improved goalie. Nice one Feasty, nice. And take his damn picture off the side of the St. Pete Times Forum and put a bigger one of Vinny and Marty. Or maybe even Dave with the Cup. But you know you got rid of him too.

[Nan]

I don't know what to think. This is the same team that played in January. We know they have it in them because we have seen it. The major difference between January and now is who was in net. This doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that Denis should not have been put in goal last night. Put the guy in who got us there in January. Was the team as disappointed as the fans when it was announced that Denis was the starter?

Tim, you are right, the Lightning organization owes the fans an apology. Thank goodness I didn't spend my hard earned money on tickets to that game. Pity on those that did.

[Tim]

If I were Ron Campbell, I would direct Jay Feaster to find a way to get rid of Marc Denis (even if it is by placing his on waivers) and fetch a proven Goalie that doesn't have a five hole as big as a barn door every time an odd man rush zooms at him. I would then tell him, you brought this expensive mess in here, now fix it. I would then tell him to sign some hard working talented players. I would then tell him it doesn't matter to anyone if they didn't come from your "glory days" at Hershey, since that's all that you prefer to bring in (see Marc Denis.)
I would then tell Torts that he needs to fix his blue line and find a way to get the puck out of the defensive end and into the opponents net, or this will be his last season in Tampa Bay. I would then give him an ultimatum that he has to at least make the Semi Finals next year or he can seek employment with someone who like's ten odd man rushes and 3 soft goals a game. I would then tell Feaster at the end of this season, he has until Thanksgiving to make the team a winner again or he can seek employment with someone who doesn't care about goaltending and pulling the trigger on decent trades when they're available.
I think that everyone can see right now that Bolts are not a competitive Hockey team but just a great display of one really good line with very little else to go with it. Torts says not to worry, the Bolts will make the Play-offs, he guarantees it. I say prove it. But if this is going to be some half a** attempt at playing like last year's play-off catastrophe, I'd rather save my money and spend it on T-times rather than watch some poor, sad, hapless excuses for hockey like we 've been seeing of late.
Last night's embarrassment #3 in 4 games should come with a big apology from the players and coaches. With all the fan support the Bolts have been getting for the last 4 seasons, its hard to understand how the St. Pete Times Forum is viewed as one of the easiest places to steal games from. This should be a house of pain for visiting teams not a house of give aways like it has been this year. Fix the Bolts and restore the passion from 2004.

Alright Patricia, you get the big "I told you so". He sucks. You're right. Johnny Grahame seems Habby like compared to this guy. If managemnet can finesse the $ to sign Vinny, Brad and Marty, they sure as hell should be able to get rid of the albatross.
There's always next year, maybe we get another throw in the goalie roulette game, or maybe just sign a supposed "has been" like Eddie Belfour. I'll take him for a year or two over our present duo.

[Patricia]

I dont know how we get rid of him, but we just do it! I said from day one, I am not putting my money on that guy. I dont think he is a strong goalie and it still pisses me off that he gets that salary and we lost Modin for him. What a waste! I can't see how any team would want to take him because he just sucks! I dont care how he goes,I dont care if we give him away, just get him out of Tampa! He has done nothing for this team and if we dont make the playoffs he is probably the reason why!