Full disclosure – I am not a goaltender expert. By any means!
But when we began our 25 Under 25 series, I wanted to tackle one of the organization’s goalie prospects in what, I believe, will be one of the most important questions to answer this season – “who is the netminder of the Jackets’ future?”
You’ll see in our series that 23 year old Anton Forsberg comes before Joonas Korpisalo, so our team here at Buckeye State Hockey collectively ranked “Korpi” higher at this time; but, I do think the Swedish Forsberg can make a compelling case for his position within the NHL club.
Forsberg came up through MODO of the Swedish Hockey League and began his North American career with a handful of games in the 2013-14 season. The 2014-15 saw Forsberg draw the starting netminder spot in Springfield where he posted a .927 save percentage in 30 games, but he faltered in five appearances in Columbus with an abysmal .866 save percentage.
With another year under his belt, Forsberg returned to the AHL and split the net with friend and co-netminder Korpisalo. In 41 games, for the Monsters, Forsberg posted a .914 save percentage (Korpisalo had a .913) but it was again the NHL stage that seemed to undo the left catching Swede. With an injury riddled season for Jackets’ starter Sergei Bobrovsky, both minor league goaltenders got ample opportunity in the big nets, and, again, Korpisalo seemed to seize the opportunity (.920 SV% in 31 games) compared to Forsberg’s .907 SV% in just four appearances.
It wasn’t until the Monsters’ Calder Cup run that Forsberg once again commanded the attention of Columbus and Cleveland hockey fans. After relinquishing the starter’s net to Korpisalo, Forsberg played the final 10 games of the playoff push, and his .949 save percentage was a major factor in Lake Erie’s Championship achievement.
So what is Forsberg? I spoke with Ingoal Magazine’s Greg Balloch earlier this year about the two netminders, and his points on Forsberg had me considering the 6-foot-3 goalie might just be the goaltender who follows Bob. Maybe?
Here’s Balloch on Forsberg:
“A lot of people have been down on him, in short stints with the big club, he struggled, and that’s what sticks out in Blue Jackets fans’ mind. But you watch him play anywhere else and he dominates. He has looked very calm (the times I’ve watched him).”
But while Balloch will point to some areas that Korpisalo can improve, including his tracking of the puck, Balloch says Korpisalo is the netminder who is more classicly trained for success and that you can see that trajectory in how he plays.
“Forsberg is a little bit deeper in his net, his big thing is his post integration – how he uses the post to his advantage. He is excellent at it. He likes using ‘reverse VH’ (the way he sets himself up on the post for sharp angle plays) but he’s very explosive with his pushes transitioning in and out of the position, he’s one of the better prospects I’ve seen at it. It adds confidence to his game. He looks calm in the net, very composed, that’s a result of how comfortable he is in reverse VH and transitioning in and out.”
Future Outlook.
In my opinion, this will be the season to decide who gets a permanent spot in Columbus next year. Curtis McElhinney’s contract is expiring after this season, and with the expansion draft looming, the Jackets will need to evaluate which of Bobrovsky, Korpisalo and Forsberg they intentionally protect and similarly who will be the face in net after Bobrovsky’s tenure concludes. I wouldn’t be surprised to see McElhinney fill the ‘roster role’ of backup goaltender, but for there to be active callups of both Forsberg and Korpisalo when Bob can’t / shouldn’t play to assess their development.
Balloch was quick to point out that young netminders such as Forsberg (or Korpisalo for that matter) develop through reps, so to have him sit permanently as an NHL backup is not the best path for someone just starting to near his prime as far as age.
Forsberg has the gifts of an NHL goalie and he has proven he can produce on a big stage…everywhere except the NHL.
If Forsberg can make the leap to show the same talent in Columbus that he has had at all other levels of play, there shapes up to be a heady battle between he and Korpisalo for a spot on the Blue Jackets roster.
Either way, it’s good these two are friends, and it bodes well for both Cleveland and Columbus to have such a strong pipeline of talent in net.
Age: 23 (11-27-1992)
Position: Goaltender
Catches: Left
Height / Weight: 6’3″ / 192 lbs.
2015/16 Team: Lake Erie Monsters (AHL)
Likely 2016/17 Destination: Cleveland Monsters (AHL) With ample visits to Columbus (NHL)
All stats courtesy of eliteprospects.com
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