It's time to put the finishing touches on the 2010-2011 season for the Buffalo Sabres. Here is a complete report card of every single player that played any amount of time with the Sabres this season. The journey began with Luke Adam and will conclude in a month with Mike Weber. Thanks to Japers Rink and Mile High Hockey for the inspiration.
After an up-and-down season, we grade out Steve Montador.
Steve Montador
#4 / Defenseman / Buffalo Sabres
6-0
207
Dec 21, 1979
Contract: $1.55 million this year, will become UFA this summer
2010 Grade: 6.71
Introduction: Over the past two seasons, Steve Montador has had his ups and downs in Buffalo. Fans like his grit and heart, but hate his blind passes through his own goalcrease, or what I like to call "The Montador Special." Montador began the year on a tear, playing great for the first two months and having a +16 rating to show for it, among the league leaders at the time. However, as the season wore on he regressed to normalcy, and found himself sliding from a position of dependability to uneasiness by the end of the season. After the jump let's break down the 2010-11 season for The Full Monty.
Key Stat: Montador set career highs this season in both total points, with 26, and +/- rating with a +16. Those are two pretty nice numbers to set career marks in.
Did You Know: If Montador ever moves to the Western conference he could be an all-star; the guy was a +14 in 17 games versus teams from the West.
Thumbs Up: Montador led the Sabres with a +/- rating of +16 and at one time was among the league leaders in that category this season. His 21 assists were the highest of his career, and all but one of those came at even strength. He's a shot blocking machine, leading the team with 138 in only 73 games and willingly plays the penalty kill. Plays with a decent amount of sandpaper for a guy who's not a physical specimen; isn't afraid to get dirty in the corners or drop the gloves when necessary.
Thumbs Down: Doesn't play on the power play, but he takes shots like he does -- Monty had a lower shooting percentage than Mike Weber and Craig Rivet despite taking the third most shots of the defensemen. It's never good when a player has to apologize for falling down in front of his own net so much, and that clumsiness helped him give the puck away 61 times, second only to Myers. His high +/- rating was thanks to a great start -- once December rolled around his +/- the rest of the way exactly 0. Saw his minutes decrease as the season wore on: from 20:12 per game in January down to 17:51 per game by April.
Voting: On a scale of one to ten, one being the lowest and ten being the highest, grade Steve Montador on his season according to the expectations you had for him. If he met them, give him a five or a six. If he eclipsed them, aim for a seven or beyond. If he failed to meet them, give him a lower number relating to how poorly he missed the target.
Topics Of Discussion: Should the Sabres re-sign Montador? Which defensive partner was he best with? Will his regression as the season wore continue, or can he bounce back next season?