December 20, 2010 was the first time we saw James Reimer in the Leafs net. Coming in for the inadequate Jonas Gustavsson mid game, the young goalie played well in his first career appearance. A relative unknown to Leafs fans at the time, he would soon take Leafs Nation by storm as the team embarked shortly thereafter on an incredible run that saw the team fall just short of a playoff berth. After years of inconsistent and sometimes downright awful goaltending, Toronto saw a ray of hope, a light at the end of the tunnel. Could James Reimer finally be the answer to the seemingly endless goaltending questions of the Toronto Maple Leafs? To this day, the answer is still unclear.
Four games into the 2011-12 season, Reimer was not disappointing anyone. He had a 4-0-1 record and was starting to prove his detractors wrong… until that fateful night in Montreal, when Brian Gionta drove to the net and made contact with Reimer’s head. He had to leave that game injured, and was never the same that year. He returned in February, but struggled with consistency. His weaknesses were clear: glove side, puck handling, and anything in the shootout. Reimer finished the year with a 3.10 GAA and a .900 save percentage, not the numbers expected from a number one goalie. Many fans called for a veteran to be added who could take over for Reimer if he faltered again, to no avail.
Fast forward to the first game of the 2012-13 season. Fans were holding their collective breaths, with Reimer coming off a relatively weak training camp and the unproven Ben Scrivens set to start opening night. Their worries were soon subsided, once Reimer got into the net and readjusted to the speed of the game he again established himself as a number one goalie. Although many of his weaknesses remained, the athletic and at times acrobatic Reimer always battled through and found a way to win. He finished the season with a 2.46 GAA, a .924 save percentage, and four shutouts, while guiding the Leafs to a 26-17-5 record and their first playoff berth since 2004. Again, there were doubts as a young team with little playoff experience was set to start the post season against a team they had struggled mightily against in the past, the Boston Bruins, with a goaltender who had exactly 0 games of NHL playoff experience. But Reimer fought through the adversity and was the biggest reason Toronto made it to Game 7 against the “big bad Bruins.”
Even though Reimer displayed number one capabilities throughout the season and fans were behind him, management was not so sure. Right from the start of the draft there were rumours of acquiring Roberto Luongo. This continued into the season, and although they died down with continued strong play from Reimer they were still present right up to the trade deadline. There were also rumours that new General Manager Dave Nonis had strong interest in Calgary goaltender Miikka Kiprusoff at the deadline. However, there were problems with both deals. Kiprusoff had a large cap hit and did not want to be traded from his long-time team. Luongo had a massive 12 year contract that proved untradeable. Both had performed well in the past, however it was clear that neither were ideal solutions to mentor Reimer, but rather supplant him as starter. Ultimately neither were acquired, and Reimer continued to prove his worth down the stretch and in the playoffs. However, the goaltending controversy did not end there.
Coming off a strong playoff performance, most were confident Reimer had done enough to establish himself as number one going forward. Not so. Several days before the draft Nonis swung a trade with the LA Kings to obtain the potential-filled Jonathan Bernier. Unlike Kiprusoff or Luongo, Bernier was young, in fact the same age, and drafted in the same year, as Reimer. It was now clear that by bringing in another young goaltender, the team was not looking for a veteran to mentor Reimer, but an upgrade.
Bernier is a different goalie than Reimer, playing calmer and utilizing the butterfly more. He is also stronger at puck handling, and using his glove. Reimer is a “scrambler” relying more on athleticism and acrobatics than a calm, structured style. This style can work though, as many goalies in the past have had success with it, including Tim Thomas, and of course, the great Dominik Hasek.
There is no doubt in my mind that James Reimer is a starting goalie in the NHL. With his athletic ability and great mental makeup, the pressure will rarely get to him and he will be able to handle the grind of playing 50-60 games year in and year out. All through his career, Reimer has always had an uphill battle to succeed. He broke his hand in junior and missed the opportunity to play at the U-18s. He didn’t even start playing hockey until he was 12. But somehow and someway, he always overcomes these obstacles. It will be hard to usurp Bernier, so it may not happen in Toronto. For now, Reimer will continue to prove his worth and do what he has successfully done his entire hockey career: fight adversity.
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