Goalie feedback

There are a lot of factors that go into a game like this. Firstly, id look at the types of goals being scored against you. Im willing to bet that not all of them were trickle ins, or 'EA goals'. Figure out how and where people are scoring on you. The player map in the middle page of the pause menu is spectacular for this, as you can filter for goals and see where people are standing when they score. Also, if you notice people are scoring five hole a lot, its worth it to put a couple extra points into five hole, especially if you notice that you get zero glove low goals. That tells you that your glove low might be slightly higher than it needs to be.

You can also consider that a poor defense will create more volatile scoring chances. You can have the best reaction times in the world, but if your defense gets burned and its 3 on 0, you would need to read the play flawlessly for just a 50/50 chance at a save. There are certain goals that youre just not going to be able to save. For example, rebounds. The way it was put to me was like this -- Your job as a goalie is to cover the shot. Anything extra you can do, is just gravy. If you let in the initial shot, thats 100% on you, and is solely poor positioning. If it rebounds, and you let the first rebound in, its 50% on you for not following up, and 50% on your D for not cleaning up. After that first rebound shot though, your defense should have been there, and its 100% on them for not cleaning up.

Your build matters too! If youre rocking Gold no timer, silver sponge, and silver post to post, and your glove high is 86, guess what? That top shelf wrist shot with close quarters is going in. Theres something called the midline effect. The closer the puck is to the center of your goalie, the higher the chance you save it. Theoretically, a goalie whos stats are all 30s with no perks or boosts can still make 50 saves as long as he is positioned perfectly for every single one of those shots. all the extra stuff, the perks, the stats, the boosts, all they do is add leniency to different zones of coverage. Your body is the best blocker you have. If every single shot goes into your chest, none of them will go in.

Lastly,  make sure your looking at your coaching feedback. Seriously. That feedback wont make you an elite goalie, but its a damn good indicator of how youre playing as a goalie. That tab will tell you exactly what techniques youre under utilizing as well as tell you what youre doing well. Itll suggest scenarios for you to look out for, and how to use the goalie techniques. I personally struggled with poke checking and passing (teamwork), and that tab is how i knew i needed to look out for those opportunities more. Theres always more you can do as a goalie.

In closing, I have a saying. Its "The best saves you can make are the shots that they couldnt take." What this means is, if someone is to the right of your post, and youre hugging the post? They cant take that shot. If they push up into your slot, and you come out to challenge, or better yet, jump in to poke check it away? Thats a save. Is it a stat? No. But its not a goal. Sometimes goalies get caught up worrying about their save stats. Remember, your job isnt to make saves. Its to stop goals.