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Minx · 05-16-2003, 02:12 PM

I know I'm just a girl and all....but I think Giguere is ok...a few others think that too.....

Giguere no overnight sensation
By Phil Coffey | NHL.com
May 15, 2003
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Pssst. Over here. We're going to let you in on a little secret here, a little inside info.
Jean-Sebastien Giguere isn't an overnight sensation.

There you go, the cat's out of the bag. Sorry to ruin all these storylines in the media about Giguere dropping down from Planet Zumar to lead the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim into the Stanley Cup Playoffs and upset series wins against the Detroit Red Wings and Dallas Stars.
"We're out in Anaheim and it's like we're on a desert island," teammate Mike Leclerc said. "The hockey world is finally getting to see him. He's been doing this for two years."
Another thing, like their goaltender, the Mighty Ducks hardly qualify as a team that appeared out of thin air to get to the Western Conference Finals. A 95-point regular season is a huge block of evidence that Anaheim is a very good team. But that's another story for another day. Now, here is the deal on Giguere.
After three games of the Western Conference Finals against the Minnesota Wild, Giguere hasn't allowed a goal in more than 2:13:17 hours. For the record, his scoreless streak is up to two hours, 18 minutes and 28 seconds, dating to Game 6 against Dallas in the second round. That's quality goaltending at a critical time of year.
It's unlikely there would be any storyline here if Giguere hadn't had an excellent regular season. Giguere appeared in 65 games during the regular season and posted a 34-22-6 record with a 2.30 goals-against average and eight shutouts. Ironically, his goals-against (2.13) and save percentage (.930) were better in 2001-02, but the team wasn't as strong, so Giguere's record was 20-25-6. By then, Anaheim knew it had a No. 1 goalie, especially after his first season in Anaheim, when the then-unheralded Giguere was 11-17-5 with a 2.57 GAA and .911 save percentage.
So Giguere, originally drafted in the first round of the 1995 Entry Draft (13th overall) by the Hartford Whalers, has found a home. Now, he and the Mighty Ducks are looking for a home in the Stanley Cup Finals.
Earning the respect and admiration of his teammates has played a big part in Giguere's success. Long before the rest of the world started taking notice, his teammates knew they had a winner. The goaltender realized as well that there would be no personal success if there wasn't team-wide success.
"The secret has been 20 guys showing up every night helping me do my job," Giguere says when quizzed about his postseason heroics. "I couldn't do that without any of the guys on the ice. My defense [has] been playing unbelievable. They did a great job making sure I see the puck all the time. If there is a rebound, they take it away. You have all [of] the forwards coming back helping the D's, taking their guys in their zone and scoring big goals. If we all do our job as good as we can, then we have a chance to be successful.
"I can't do it out on the ice by myself," he said after shutting out the Wild in Game 2. "I need my D to help me and the forwards to come back and take them in. Tonight, they did such a good job, obviously. I saw every shot out there. They took all the rebounds away and they were really tough in front of the net. It was tough for the Wild to try to come and get in front of me."
As a result, another playoff shutout is added to the ledger. But, the goaltender insists there is only one stat worth tracking now -- the total number of wins leading up to the 16 it takes to win the Stanley Cup.
"Jiggy is making a case for himself to be moved into the next level of great goaltenders." --Anaheim veteran Steve Thomas.
"A shutout is really not important in the playoffs," he said. "What's important is trying to get the win as much as possible. It doesn't matter what the final score is. It could be 8-7, 1-0. We just want to win. As far as the 'zone' is concerned, I'm feeling pretty good. You know, I was ready to play in the playoffs. I have been practicing for this for three years. I have been trying to get ready for this exact moment, and right now, I'm having a lot of fun. Every game is a great challenge. I'm feeling like I'm getting better right now."
"He's gotten on a roll here," agreed Wild goalie Manny Fernandez, who was on the losing end of Game 1's 1-0 double-overtime decision. "He's got a lot of confidence. He's made himself a little bubble. He's kind of a legend right now living in this League."
"Jiggy is making a case for himself to be moved into the next level of great goaltenders," Anaheim veteran Steve Thomas said. "A lot of guys do a pretty good job, but the ones who are great make a difference in big games. That's what great goaltending is about."
Giguere hasn't just gotten hot in the playoffs. He had three shutouts in a row during the regular season and also had a scoreless streak of 237 minutes and seven seconds, longest in the NHL in more than 50 years.
"I don't think the playoffs have anything to do with being hot or cold. It has to do with being prepared," said Giguere. "If you're prepared and ready to go, you should be successful."
Giguere and the word "prepared" are joined at the hip. That is the basis of his goaltending philosophy -- being ready.
"If I make a spectacular save, it means I did something wrong," Giguere said. "I have had two of those. That is enough for one playoff."
Giguere explains, "If I make a spectacular save, it means I did something wrong."
Giguere was referring to a spectacular save he made in Game 1 against the Wild.
The Wild nearly grabbed the lead in Game 1 during a power-play sequence after Ducks center Samuel Pahlsson was called for cross-checking at 10:05 of the second period. A fine backhand, cross-crease pass by Andrew Brunette set up teammate Marian Gaborik, Minnesota's top scorer, for a backhand shot from low on the left side, but Giguere lunged across the paint to get the paddle of his stick on Gaborik's bid. The save was tough for everyone to fathom, that's how good it was. Well, except for Giguere, who had another description for it.
"A little bit lucky," Giguere said. "I thought Brunette did a great job. I don't think he had much to shoot at, and he made a nice pass to Gaborik. It was just kind of a diving save. Sometimes you need one of those. Hopefully, I won't have to do too many, but I'll take it.
"That's not the way I want to make saves. I was out of position. I was lucky. I want to be square to the shooter, square on the puck."
"That might have been the save of the playoffs," Anaheim captain Paul Kariya said.
To Mighty Ducks defenseman Keith Carney, the save was just business as usual with Giguere.
"Here we go again," Carney said. "Game 1 on the road, another overtime game and Jiggy making it possible for us to win at the end."
"Giguere is on top of his game," Wild coach Jacques Lemaire said. "But like any other goaltender, you look at them closely and you find they have strengths and weaknesses, and you have to work on his weakness. We know where they are. We have to get the opportunity, and we'll get them."
The clock is ticking on the relentless Wild, who have twice come back from a 3-1 deficit to advance this spring. Minnesota's ability to come back, especially on the road, provides a solid sense of reality for Giguere.
"Our confidence level is pretty good," he said. "Even coming into the playoffs, we knew we had a pretty good team. We knew we could win some games. We're a pretty young team, but getting those two series wrapped up is really good for the confidence. The Wild's confidence is probably as high as it is for our team. It's going to get harder and harder to win games. It's going to be very exciting. It's going to be very tough and a lot of fun to play in.
"This is what I have been working toward the last three years," he said. "I have worked hard because I wanted this moment."

05-16-2003, 02:12 PM	#55 (permalink)
Minx Junkie Location: Up yonder	I know I'm just a girl and all....but I think Giguere is ok...a few others think that too..... Giguere no overnight sensation By Phil Coffey \| NHL.com May 15, 2003 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Pssst. Over here. We're going to let you in on a little secret here, a little inside info. Jean-Sebastien Giguere isn't an overnight sensation. There you go, the cat's out of the bag. Sorry to ruin all these storylines in the media about Giguere dropping down from Planet Zumar to lead the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim into the Stanley Cup Playoffs and upset series wins against the Detroit Red Wings and Dallas Stars. "We're out in Anaheim and it's like we're on a desert island," teammate Mike Leclerc said. "The hockey world is finally getting to see him. He's been doing this for two years." Another thing, like their goaltender, the Mighty Ducks hardly qualify as a team that appeared out of thin air to get to the Western Conference Finals. A 95-point regular season is a huge block of evidence that Anaheim is a very good team. But that's another story for another day. Now, here is the deal on Giguere. After three games of the Western Conference Finals against the Minnesota Wild, Giguere hasn't allowed a goal in more than 2:13:17 hours. For the record, his scoreless streak is up to two hours, 18 minutes and 28 seconds, dating to Game 6 against Dallas in the second round. That's quality goaltending at a critical time of year. It's unlikely there would be any storyline here if Giguere hadn't had an excellent regular season. Giguere appeared in 65 games during the regular season and posted a 34-22-6 record with a 2.30 goals-against average and eight shutouts. Ironically, his goals-against (2.13) and save percentage (.930) were better in 2001-02, but the team wasn't as strong, so Giguere's record was 20-25-6. By then, Anaheim knew it had a No. 1 goalie, especially after his first season in Anaheim, when the then-unheralded Giguere was 11-17-5 with a 2.57 GAA and .911 save percentage. So Giguere, originally drafted in the first round of the 1995 Entry Draft (13th overall) by the Hartford Whalers, has found a home. Now, he and the Mighty Ducks are looking for a home in the Stanley Cup Finals. Earning the respect and admiration of his teammates has played a big part in Giguere's success. Long before the rest of the world started taking notice, his teammates knew they had a winner. The goaltender realized as well that there would be no personal success if there wasn't team-wide success. "The secret has been 20 guys showing up every night helping me do my job," Giguere says when quizzed about his postseason heroics. "I couldn't do that without any of the guys on the ice. My defense [has] been playing unbelievable. They did a great job making sure I see the puck all the time. If there is a rebound, they take it away. You have all [of] the forwards coming back helping the D's, taking their guys in their zone and scoring big goals. If we all do our job as good as we can, then we have a chance to be successful. "I can't do it out on the ice by myself," he said after shutting out the Wild in Game 2. "I need my D to help me and the forwards to come back and take them in. Tonight, they did such a good job, obviously. I saw every shot out there. They took all the rebounds away and they were really tough in front of the net. It was tough for the Wild to try to come and get in front of me." As a result, another playoff shutout is added to the ledger. But, the goaltender insists there is only one stat worth tracking now -- the total number of wins leading up to the 16 it takes to win the Stanley Cup. "Jiggy is making a case for himself to be moved into the next level of great goaltenders." --Anaheim veteran Steve Thomas. "A shutout is really not important in the playoffs," he said. "What's important is trying to get the win as much as possible. It doesn't matter what the final score is. It could be 8-7, 1-0. We just want to win. As far as the 'zone' is concerned, I'm feeling pretty good. You know, I was ready to play in the playoffs. I have been practicing for this for three years. I have been trying to get ready for this exact moment, and right now, I'm having a lot of fun. Every game is a great challenge. I'm feeling like I'm getting better right now." "He's gotten on a roll here," agreed Wild goalie Manny Fernandez, who was on the losing end of Game 1's 1-0 double-overtime decision. "He's got a lot of confidence. He's made himself a little bubble. He's kind of a legend right now living in this League." "Jiggy is making a case for himself to be moved into the next level of great goaltenders," Anaheim veteran Steve Thomas said. "A lot of guys do a pretty good job, but the ones who are great make a difference in big games. That's what great goaltending is about." Giguere hasn't just gotten hot in the playoffs. He had three shutouts in a row during the regular season and also had a scoreless streak of 237 minutes and seven seconds, longest in the NHL in more than 50 years. "I don't think the playoffs have anything to do with being hot or cold. It has to do with being prepared," said Giguere. "If you're prepared and ready to go, you should be successful." Giguere and the word "prepared" are joined at the hip. That is the basis of his goaltending philosophy -- being ready. "If I make a spectacular save, it means I did something wrong," Giguere said. "I have had two of those. That is enough for one playoff." Giguere explains, "If I make a spectacular save, it means I did something wrong." Giguere was referring to a spectacular save he made in Game 1 against the Wild. The Wild nearly grabbed the lead in Game 1 during a power-play sequence after Ducks center Samuel Pahlsson was called for cross-checking at 10:05 of the second period. A fine backhand, cross-crease pass by Andrew Brunette set up teammate Marian Gaborik, Minnesota's top scorer, for a backhand shot from low on the left side, but Giguere lunged across the paint to get the paddle of his stick on Gaborik's bid. The save was tough for everyone to fathom, that's how good it was. Well, except for Giguere, who had another description for it. "A little bit lucky," Giguere said. "I thought Brunette did a great job. I don't think he had much to shoot at, and he made a nice pass to Gaborik. It was just kind of a diving save. Sometimes you need one of those. Hopefully, I won't have to do too many, but I'll take it. "That's not the way I want to make saves. I was out of position. I was lucky. I want to be square to the shooter, square on the puck." "That might have been the save of the playoffs," Anaheim captain Paul Kariya said. To Mighty Ducks defenseman Keith Carney, the save was just business as usual with Giguere. "Here we go again," Carney said. "Game 1 on the road, another overtime game and Jiggy making it possible for us to win at the end." "Giguere is on top of his game," Wild coach Jacques Lemaire said. "But like any other goaltender, you look at them closely and you find they have strengths and weaknesses, and you have to work on his weakness. We know where they are. We have to get the opportunity, and we'll get them." The clock is ticking on the relentless Wild, who have twice come back from a 3-1 deficit to advance this spring. Minnesota's ability to come back, especially on the road, provides a solid sense of reality for Giguere. "Our confidence level is pretty good," he said. "Even coming into the playoffs, we knew we had a pretty good team. We knew we could win some games. We're a pretty young team, but getting those two series wrapped up is really good for the confidence. The Wild's confidence is probably as high as it is for our team. It's going to get harder and harder to win games. It's going to be very exciting. It's going to be very tough and a lot of fun to play in. "This is what I have been working toward the last three years," he said. "I have worked hard because I wanted this moment." __________________ You've been a naughty boy....go to my room!