Goalie ratings

A goalie is judged on seven ratings of his own, not on a skater’s. Open his page to read them, and remember that which ones matter most depends on the shooters he faces. Skater ratings are on player ratings.

Reading a goalie’s ratings

Open a goalie’s page and look under Rated on Overview. Use his Overall for a quick comparison, and the ratings themselves when you pick a goalie for a game.

Each rating has a bar with a short name and its value: RFX for Reflexes, POS for Positioning, PKC for Puck control, PKH for Puck handling, ATH for Athletic, END for Endurance and SPR for Spirit. The bar runs from red through orange and blue to green as the rating rises. The chart beside the bars carries his Overall. Rated also rates him out of five against the goalies of his club’s league, with a mark on each bar for the middle of them; how that rating works is on player ratings. Further down the same Overview, his Confidence, Fitness and Happiness show in words. Under Development on his page you can follow each rating over time, and his height is in the header.

Overall is a summary for comparing goalies. It leans most on Reflexes, Positioning and Athletic, then Puck control, and least on Endurance, Puck handling and Spirit. It reads his ratings as they stand: it leaves out his height and the opponent he faces, and both change what he is worth on a given night.

The seven ratings

In the save itself, your goalie counts for more than the skaters in front of him. Six of his ratings go into the save; Endurance works through his fitness instead.

Reflexes (RFX)

How fast he reacts to the shot. Reflexes count in every save and in the shootout, and most against Puck Possession.

Positioning (POS)

How well he covers the angles and holds his ground in the crease. It counts in every save and in the shootout, and most against Crash the Net. A tall goalie positions better than his rating says (see Height).

Puck control (PKC)

How well he handles rebounds and loose pucks in front of him. Every save ends with a rebound to deal with. A poor one gives the attackers the puck back; a decent one stops play; a good one gets the puck going the other way. Puck control counts most there. It also counts in every save, more against Crash the Net and Puck Possession, and in the shootout. A shaky rebound costs your team momentum, and a perfect one gains some.

Puck handling (PKH)

How well he plays the puck with his stick. It counts a little in every save and in rebound control, and it helps your team start the attack from its own end. It plays no part in the shootout.

Athletic (ATH)

His agility: recovering when he is out of position or down on the ice, and moving post to post. It counts most against Transition Rushes and in the shootout. Height takes something from it.

Endurance (END)

How well he copes with a heavy workload, how fast he recovers, and how well he resists injury. It plays no part in the save itself; it decides how fresh he is when the puck drops. See Starter, backup and fatigue.

Spirit (SPR)

How he handles pressure and setbacks, and how hard he battles for loose pucks. It counts in saves, most against Crash the Net, in rebound control and in the shootout.

Spirit, his experience and how he handles big games decide whether pressure gets to him. Pressure comes in the playoffs, in a game against a club well below you in the standings, and late in a game while the other team has yet to score. Spirit also decides, with his ambition, how much he gets out of practice.

Height

A tall goalie covers more net but moves less freely. In games and in the shootout, his height adds to his Positioning and takes from his Athletic play, and the taller he is, the more. Weight plays no part.

If his height stands out, weigh it against the opponent: a tall goalie suits a night against Crash the Net, where Positioning counts most; against Transition Rushes, where Athletic counts most, his height works against him.

What the opponent’s system asks for

The shooters he faces decide which of his ratings stop them. If two goalies are close in Overall, compare them on the ratings the opponent’s system asks for.

The opponent plays	What counts most for your goalie
Puck Possession	Reflexes first, then Positioning, Puck control and Athletic
Crash the Net	Positioning first, then Puck control and Spirit
Dump & Chase	All six about evenly
Transition Rushes	Athletic first

You don’t see the opponent’s system before the game. The Assistant’s report… on the pre-game page describes how they created chances in their recent games, by the offense they played most. Until they have played a game that counts this season, it has no such read. If it says they cycle the puck low, Reflexes count most. If it says they score from in close, look at Positioning, Puck control and Spirit. If it says they go the other way fast, look at Athletic. Rebounds are also harder to control against Crash the Net and easier against Transition Rushes. More on reading the opponent is on tactics.

A Goalie saving scouting report reads his saving ability against each offensive system.

Starter, backup and fatigue

Name a Starter and a Backup in Edit lineup. The starter plays every game until you change him or he can’t play, so watch his Fitness: if he shows Tired or Exhausted, give the backup the start.

A goalie spot shows the goalie’s Overall, with no fit word and no Suggested pick. Auto starts the goalie with the best Overall who can play and is not exhausted, and makes the next one the backup. See lineup. While you are away on holiday, your assistant picks the lineup instead; see manager absence.

A goalie does not tire during a game. His fitness at puck drop sets his level for the whole game, and a goalie who starts Tired plays well below his ratings; Exhausted, much more so. A tired or exhausted goalie is also more likely to get hurt.

The game takes its toll afterwards. The heavier his night, the more fitness he loses: more shots against, less of the puck for your team, and an opponent playing Hard or Dirty all add to it. His Endurance decides how much of that he shrugs off. A goalie who sits out a game gets his fitness back, and a high Endurance speeds that up.

Endurance also helps him avoid injury. Crash the Net, the Spread power play and a Dirty opponent raise his risk; a Safe or Fair opponent lowers it. If your goalie is hurt during a game, the backup comes in.

How he feels counts too. Saves build his confidence and a fumbled rebound costs some, and his confidence carries into his play. An unhappy goalie plays below his ratings.

How a goalie develops

A goalie improves in the ratings his games ask of him. In games he gains experience in what the opponents’ systems ask a goalie to stop, plus Endurance, and a little more Endurance after overtime. In practice he works on what your own offense and power play ask a goalie to stop, plus Endurance. Goalies have no training focus to choose, only an intensity. See training and development.

Worth knowing

• Overall and the bars on his page leave out his height. In games, a tall goalie positions better than his rating says and moves worse.
• Every save ends with a rebound. A goalie who controls it stops play or starts the attack; one who doesn’t hands the puck back. Puck control counts most there, and Crash the Net makes it harder.
• Endurance plays no part in a save, but it decides how often he can start and still be fresh.
• While you run the club, a tired starter is not rested for you. He plays every game until you change him or he can’t play, however low his Fitness runs.
• Pressure tests his nerve, which rests on Spirit, his experience and how he handles big games. It comes in the playoffs, in a game against a club well below you, and in a shutout bid late in a game.