Nov 2, 2014; Washington, DC, USA; Arizona Coyotes goalie Devan Dubnyk (40) celebrates with Coyotes goalie Mike Smith (41) after their game against the Washington Capitals at Verizon Center. The Coyotes won 6-5. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
What does all this statistical geekery mean?
Here is what you should take away:
1) Devan Dubnyk should be the starter for the short term. He is on fire right now, stopping 91 of his last 95 shots faced — but he has proven to be the better option all season, and his stats show this isn’t an anomaly. Until he cools off significantly, he needs to stay in net.
2) When Mike Smith gets his chance again, he should — at some point — return to the league average goalie he is. The idea of regression to the mean says as much.
3) Devan Dubnyk is much better than he gets credit for — people need to forget about his 13-14 season.
4) Mike Smith is league average, and it’s time to accept that.
My thanks to War on Ice for providing all the data, which I hope I have presented in a very digestible way.
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