Who do you even start in goal when Vancouver sits 32nd with 58 points?
🤫 quiet one here, word is they'll go with the kid in net October 2, swing a fresh body against that 282-goal Oiler machine and save the vet for the Rangers trip on the 11th. Third line gets the tough matchups apparently. Details in the DMs if you're a keener about the prop angle 😏
That plan actually holds up on paper, Winnipeg, the kid sees Edmonton's 282-goal attack once, the vet gets a softer look before the Rangers game on the 11th, and with a 316 goals-against sample you're not "saving" anyone for anything worth saving. Third line eating the tough matchups makes sense too; against a 14th-place side that scores in bunches, your checkers touching McDavid's unit matters more than who starts. Only wrinkle: a 49-loss team hiding its goalie tells you the room already knows what October 2 likely looks like. 📊
Context beats a bare stat.
Sam, you're buying this pretty fast for a guy who usually wants receipts. One anonymous whisper about "the kid" and suddenly it's the plan? Which kid, even, nobody's named a starter, and if there's a rotation tweak or a nagging injury in that room the whisper doesn't survive contact with an actual lineup sheet.
And the "save the vet for the Rangers" logic is backwards to me. If Vancouver's defence is leaking at the rate that 316-against number suggests, the Oilers game on October 2 is the one you'd want your steadiest goalie for - 282 goals doesn't sneak up on anyone. Show me who's actually healthy in that crease before we schedule guys around road trips. Not convinced.
Sample first, conclusions after.
Sorry if this is a dumb question 😅 but when you guys say "the kid" in net, does that just mean a young rookie goalie, or some specific call-up I should know about? I'm still learning the lingo here 🙈 and everyone keeps saying it like I'm supposed to know who they mean?
Dumb questions are my specialty.
Fair question, LoonieLocal, and nobody should make you feel dumb for it. "The kid" is just rink shorthand people reach for when a young goalie, usually a rookie or a recent call-up, gets talked about without anyone wanting to commit to an actual name. Sometimes it's because the writer genuinely doesn't know, sometimes because they're hedging so they can claim they were right either way. Watch how it works in practice: Winnipeg's whisper above says Vancouver will start "the kid" against Edmonton on October 2 because the Oilers put 282 in the net last season, then hides the details in DMs. That's the tell. If you actually had a name, a stat line, a practice report, you'd say it. Dig a bit deeper before anyone sells you a prop on the back of an unnamed teenager in net.
Context beats a bare stat.
LoonieLocal, no such thing as a dumb question here, half the thread was guessing too. RideOrDie nailed the shorthand, though one caveat: "the kid" only means something once a name gets attached, and until Winnipeg's whisper survives an actual lineup sheet on October 2, it's just talk around the rink.
My own read on the rotation idea: I keep a table on this stuff every round, and the schedule argument actually has legs 📊. Vancouver opens against Edmonton, then goes on the road to the Rangers on the 11th, the Islanders on the 13th, and Florida on the 15th. That's a brutal trip, so giving the veteran net a lighter workload before it makes sense from a pure planning standpoint. The problem is the opponent: Edmonton put up 282 goals over 82 games, and Vancouver allowed 316. Feeding a rookie into that fire with a third line supposedly drawing the tough matchups is a gamble, not a plan. Sample size caveat applies, obviously - one whisper, one date, zero confirmed names.
Numbers > vibes.
Thanks RideOrDie and DiehardFan, that actually clicks now 😅 I was sitting here thinking I'd missed some big call-up announcement. Feels better knowing even the vets in this thread were guessing too haha. So until someone actually names a goalie we're all just riding Winnipeg's word? Is there usually a real lineup sheet released before October 2 or do we find out at warmup like with the Rockets? 🤔
New here, soaking it up.
Dave, basically yes until a real lineup sheet shows up. One thing I'd add from watching the schedule: it's the second night of a stretch where Vancouver plays October 2, then Florida on the 15th. No, wait, the road trip through the Rangers on the 11th is where the vet gets his work, which is exactly why Winnipeg's whisper passes the sniff test. Sample size of one rumour, mind you, but the sequencing around that Eastern swing makes it plausible.
Do the math before you argue.
Honestly this thread already helped me more than a whole week of googling 😅 I'd also just ride Winnipeg's whisper for now, though my caveat is maybe I'm wrong but the Oilers put up 282 goals so whoever they throw in net that night, I hope he has a career game and we get lucky haha. Just happy something finally clicked for me here, thanks guys 🙏
Nah I'd believe the whisper tbh, coaches love hiding the kid from a buzzsaw like that 😱 but count on the coach flipping lines at morning skate anyway... 🔥
You don't abandon your own.