It's time to put the finishing touches on the 2008-2009 season for the Buffalo Sabres. Here is a complete report card of every single player that played a significant amount of time with the Sabres this season. Thanks to Japers Rink and Mile High Hockey for the inspiration.
Key Stat: Lalime was called upon to lift the Sabres when Ryan Miller was injured. He played well at times but finished the season with a 5-13-3 record and a 3.10 goals against average. Those numbers are well below the league average. Lalime finished with a .900 save percentage but that stat is misleading. When it was analyzed further he had a save percentage of approximately .877.
Interesting Stat: Despite his struggles this season, Lalime was outstanding while the Sabres were shorthanded. He was fifth in the league with a 93.2 save percentage while a man down. He was behind only Craig Anderson 94.1 (Florida), Nicklas Backstrom 93.7 (Minnesota), Tim Thomas 93.5 (Boston) and Henrik Lundqvist 93.5 (NY Rangers).
Fun Fact: In his spare time, Lalime likes to fly a helicopter. He bought one back in the summer of 2006. {Patrick Lalime Fan Page}
The Good: Lalime came to Buffalo with the expectations that he was going to play 15-20 games as a backup to Ryan Miller. He played in 24 games but that number would have been considerably less if MIller would not have been injured. Despite sitting on the bench more than he was expected to, we never heard a disparaging word from Lalime. He was the consimate professional while playing second fiddle to Miller.
The Bad: The entire above stat line would be part of the bad. Lalime won only five times in 21 decisions and was among the worst goalies in the league on goals against average. This all comes despite most of the shots coming at him from the outside.
Both Lalime and MIller had a average shot distance of more than 38. Lalime faced shots from an average distance of 38.26 ft. Lalime was decent on the far shots with a save percentage of .927 but he struggled horribly on the close shots. Lalime was among the worst in the league on the intermediate shots of 15-30 feet. He allowed 27 goals on only 167 shots for a save percentage of .837.
2008-2009 Salary: $1,000,000
2009-2010 Status: signed for $1,000,000
Vote: It's time to grade Lalime for his play in the 2008-2009 season. Every player has expectations so vote based on those expectations. If a player played to their potential they should receive a "C" if they exceeded expectations they would receive a "B" or an "A".
Discuss: What was your initial reaction when the Sabres signed Lalime? Did Lalime live up to the expectations you had when he was signed? Did Lalime do enough when Miller was hurt to help this team win? Do you hope that he can recover from his injury and once again be a backup for the Sabres?
Up Next: Toni Lydman