OHL editorial: Is goaltending really an issue for the Greyhounds?

Can the Soo Greyhounds win with Brandon Halverson as their starting goaltender?

That has been the million-dollar question.

The Greyhounds decided to add at the trade deadline but remain status quo between the pipes with Halverson and Joseph Raaymakers as their goaltenders the rest of the season.

Halverson has been inconsistent at times, there’s no question about it.

Take his first two games after returning from the World Juniors for example.

Halverson played his first game following his stint with Team USA at the World Junior Hockey Championships in a 6-5 win over the Sudbury Wolves on Jan. 7, a game he didn’t look sharp in.

Two nights later in Saginaw, with the Greyhounds sporting a new-look lineup following the trade deadline earlier in the day, Halverson made 33 saves in a 3-1 win and received glowing reviews following the win from Coach Sheldon Keefe.

Following the Saginaw win, Halverson then posted a 26-save shutout against the Plymouth Whalers.

That brings us to the Greyhounds 12-5 win over Saginaw at the Essar Centre earlier this month. Halverson struggled, giving up three goals on 13 shots and was pulled. Against Guelph two nights later, Halverson was solid in a victory over the Storm.

Despite the inconsistencies, consider this, after dropping three-straight decisions between Oct. 19 and Nov. 1, which included a no-decision in a loss to London where he was pulled, Halverson has won 17 games and suffered a pair of shootout losses in a span of 20 games.

Looking back through those 17 wins, 11 of them saw him face at least 30 shots and five of them were in the 35+ range.

His goals against average through the end of October was 3.44 including a mark of 3.70 in October. Since the end of October his GAA has dropped to 2.95. His save percentage, 0.895 through October, now stands at 0.906.

Since the OHL trade deadline, Halverson has posted a 2.69 goals against average, which would put him fifth in the OHL over a full season, and 0.910 save percentage in the seven games since the Greyhounds loaded up.

Though the wins haven’t come in an ideal way this season for the18-year-old goaltender, the fact at the end of the day is he has posted a 24-3-0-2 record this season and the end result is what matters most, isn’t it?