2009 NHL Draft Goaltending - Part 1

Although the main focus of all Islanders fans as of late has been the first overall selection that we hold in this upcoming draft, it is also important to realize that it isn’t just the first pick that makes or breaks a franchise, but the many picks that you have throughout the later parts of the draft that help to truly make or break a franchise. Keeping this in mind, the Islanders currently have a difficult situation on their hands. Franchise player and goaltender Rick DiPietro has suffered several injuries recently to his hips and knees that kept him out for part of the 2007-2008 season, as well as pretty much the entire 2008-2009 season.

The question that hangs over all Islander fans heads is: can DiPietro return to the player he was in the beginning of the 2007-2008 season? Can he really go back to being the all-star that he was? Regardless of this answer, I am part of the camp that believes that the Islanders need to acquire a goaltender in this upcoming draft in order to ensure success in the future. Considering it will take at least three to four years before the goalie truly blossoms into an effective player, I feel that this year is the year we should finally invest a top draft pick into a good goalie.

The goaltending talent in this upcoming draft is actually fairly decent from North America; however, it is fairly weak on the European side in comparison to other years. No goalie has been listed in the top 30 players under the ISS Rankings or the Central Scouting Services rankings going into the draft. While this may lead many to believe that the goaltending talent isn’t that good this year, I beg to differ. Why is this good for the Islanders? Well, considering the abundance of second round picks, one can be used to select possibly a top goaltender in this draft. Let us take a look at the top four goaltenders available in the draft this year. Unfortunately for them, and pretty much every other player, John Tavares and Hedman have dominated the talk, so they have been given less respect than they deserve.

Today, let’s look briefly at the first two goalies, both from the European side of the pond. Tomorrow, we will take a brief look at the second two goalies. While I have seen some clips of each goalie play, I am not as familiar with these four players as I am with many other players in the pool. Therefore, these summaries will be rather brief and only cover basic pros and cons of each goalie.

First off is Robin Lehner, the first-ranked European goalie, and  a 6 foot 4 inch, 220 pound monster-sized goalie from Goteborg, Sweden. Currently in the system of Frolunda, Lehner is in good hands as Frolunda has a good history of churning out good prospects. Besides playing on the Junior-20 Frolunda team, Lehner was also a split-starter in the 2008 World Junior Championships, as well as the full-time starter for Sweden in the 2009 World Junior Championships in which he received a silver medal and played excellently. Noted for his big size and rather quick legs, Lehner has also shown a great ability to play both his glove-side and his stick side as well. His biggest flaw, which many have come to notice after the WJC final against Canada, is that Lehner is not good at playing the puck. To be fair, most Swedish goalies are not known for their stick-handling abilities, and in today’s NHL it is a very important characteristic.

Lehner is a great goalie with an excellent set of skills. Coming from Sweden, and being brought up through the Frolunda system bodes well for any team taking Lehner, as he will be learning form a top-notch team. Judging where he is taken overall in this year’s draft is rather tough, as I do not have personal knowledge of all 30 teams draft depth charts. I would expect him to go somewhere in the early rounds (rounds two through four), however, it is hard to predict these days. In my personal opinion, Lehner will take about three years at minimum to develop, however, he does have the ability to be a great goaltender in the NHL if he develops properly. 

Second is Mikko Koskinen (pictured above), the second-ranked European goalie entering the 2009 NHL Draft. If you thought that Robin Lehner was above-average in terms of size, take a good look at Koskinen. Coming in at 6 feet, 7 inches tall, and weighing approximately 200 pounds, Koskinen is one of the tallest goaltenders to ever come through the NHL drafting process. Born and raised in Vantaa, Finland, Koskinen hails from a country that has pushed out great NHL goaltenders such as Mikka Kipprusoff and Vesa Toskala. Koskinen currently plays for the U20 Blues Espoo in the Junior-B league in Finland and has come up through their rankings for his entire professional career. Unfortunately for Koskinen, he did not participate in the World Junior Championships at any time throughout his career, and therefore scouts have not been able to measure him up against many of the other goaltenders when it comes to performance on the international stage.

Koskinen, although tremendously large in stature, is unfortunately light in terms of weight. With a 6 foot 7 frame, many scouts would like to see him weighing at least 225 pounds, and the hopes of any team that drafts him are that he can put on this necessary weight to deal with the wear and tear of an NHL season. Although he has very quick legs and a great glove, Koskinen is still a rather big goaltender and can tend to get beaten five hole if he does not close up fast enough. Furthermore, while his leg “wing-span” is absurdly large due to his large stature, he still needs to work on his full side-to-side movement, especially when a smaller rink is in play as the game demands faster reflexes, in my opinion. While still very talented overall, coupled with the fact that his frame appears as if he can put on the extra weight, it will still take quite some time for Koskinen to develop into an NHL ready talent. My guess: three to four years at minimum before Koskinen is NHL ready and performing as he can.

Be sure to check back tomorrow as I wrap up the 2009 Goaltending preview with the last two goalies, both from the North American side of the pond. I will also give my opinion on each and rank them in order of preference. Any questions of comments feel free to leave them in the ‘COMMENTS’ section below or email me at IslesNet@Gmail.Com .