Every Goalie has a Tipping Point | MarkJoel66's Blog

There comes a time when facing shots takes its toll on a goalie. Maybe it's just a law of averages. Maybe it is the psychological trauma of being the last man in the breach too many times... whatever... when a team launches over 40 shots at a goalie, you can hear the dam beginning to break.

It happened to Varlamov. Last night it happened to Cam Ward.

The question now remains: Can all the Canes Horses, and all the Canes men put Humpty Ward back together again?

In Game one, Cam Ward was magnificent. In series One and Two, he was the MVP of the team.

But last night, Cam Ward faced 42 shots, and it was too much. They came from everywhere. Players were jumping off of the bench to join in the rush. (Malkin's first goal does make you wonder if from now on, Carolina will have someone on their bench whose sole job is to watch Malkin, and start slapping a stick off the bench loudly whenever he enters the arena...) Some shots were even coming over the shooter's shoulder from impossible angles. Forgive Cam Ward if he is twitchy tonight in his sleep -- he will be seeing black rubber coming at him like a pack of Piranhas in his dreams.

Yes, some of those goals were not his fault. When Crosby gets a cross-ice feed anywhere near the net it is as good as in.

But how did Ward miss Kris Kunitz' back hand? Why did he watch the Max Talbot shot hit the twine? Those were stoppable shots on a night when his team desperately needed him to stop them.

But... there comes a tipping point. Launching 15 shots a period at a goalie wears him out. Physically. Emotionally. Psychologically. It's almost as though every goalie has a certain number of stops in him, and when that point is reached, he just gets slap-happy -- like Jerry Lewis on day three of the telethon.

Cam Ward has been sensational in net all playoffs. But -- and this is important to remember -- he has never faced the Pittsburgh Penguins in the playoffs before. He has never seen this kind of play.

When the Devils got 40 shots on goal they won. Ditto the Bruins (though they only managed that number once.) The Penguins were off their mark in game 1, but showed their stuff in game two. They managed to pummel Varlamov in the Washington series as well, and watched the rookie crack under the strain.

This is a team that can put 40 shots on goal a night. And not ticky tack shots from the blue line. This is a team of superstars who don't mind going to the net. This is a team that can create something out of nothing and launch quality shots from inconceivable angles. (Don't you think Cam Ward thought he was safe right before Malkin threw that backhand at him from behind his back?)

Varlamov suffered a couple of meltdowns when he faced this onslaught.

Cam Ward is a better goalie. More seasoned. Tougher.

He'd better be.

Because this Penguin team can make a grown goalie cry...