Penguins: Tristan Jarry is deserving of more playing time

Backup goaltender Tristan Jarry has been a pleasant surprise for the Pittsburgh Penguins.

There are a bunch of reasons to be optimistic about the Pittsburgh Penguins through 24 games. Their underlying numbers are elite. Jared McCann has picked up right where he left off the 2018-19 campaign. Dominik Kahun has really found himself after a slow start.

One of the most surprising developments has been the performance of Tristan Jarry as the Penguins backup netminder. His performance up to this point has provided the Penguins with an embarrassment of riches in the cage.

I was surprised (and skeptical) of the Penguins electing to go with Jarry as Matt Murray’s backup instead of Casey DeSmith at the conclusion of training camp.

DeSmith was an above-average goaltender in Pittsburgh last season. His numbers were very good. When the Penguins made this decision, I was anticipating another NHL club to claim DeSmith off of waivers. That did not happen. With a couple of shoutouts, DeSmith has been playing very well down in Wilkes-Barre over the last couple of weeks.

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Anyways, the Penguins appear to have made the correct decision in regards to their backup goaltender.

Amongst the 51 NHL goaltenders who have played 300 minutes this season, here is where Jarry ranks in some statistical categories. All data is courtesy of Natural Stat Trick.

• Even-Strength Save Percentage: .960 (1st)
• Even-Strength High Danger Save Percentage .909 (1st)
• Goals Saved Above Average: 7.61 (9th)

Here is a look at the shot locations that Jarry has faced, courtesy of Charting Hockey.

"View post on imgur.com"

It is very important to note that this is a very small sample size in regards to Jarry’s workload. He is not the best goalie in the league. He has played 7 games and just under 400 minutes. But he has made the most of his playing time.

It is also always important to use context when evaluating players. The Penguins have been one of the best defensive teams in hockey this season. This has been to Jarry’s benefit. As you will see in this visual below, the majority of the shots that Jarry is facing are coming from the perimeter. The blue indicates that the Penguins are doing an excellent job of suppressing high-danger scoring chances against. The red indicates that opponents are generating a lot from the right-point area of the ice.

Matt Murray has a rocky month of November. This has happened before. He has righted the ship and gotten back on track before. I suspect that will be the case this time around, too. Just to be clear, there is no goaltending controversy here.

However, considering we are in the day and age where sports science and the load management of professional athletes are becoming increasingly important, Jarry needs to see more playing time. Reducing and managing Murray’s workload more efficiently throughout the regular season would likely lead to him being healthier and better-rested for the playoffs. Jarry’s performance has given the Penguins the option to take that route if they choose to do so. It is a win/win proposition for Mike Sullivan and the coaching staff. This is a good problem to have.

To summarize – Matt Murray will be fine. The early returns on Tristan Jarry have been encouraging. Casey DeSmith is better than your typical AHL goaltender.

I suspect the NHL teams that are in need of a backup goaltender, (Toronto, San Jose, and Vegas come to mind) regret passing on DeSmith. It would not surprise me if one of these teams tries to strike a deal for one of the Penguins’ netminders in the near future. Thanks for reading!