It was probably the most difficult decision Ron Wilson has had to make this season.  Give the guy who is coming off a shutout another start in goal or go back to the goaltender that has been the most consistent over the stretch.  This time, Wilson picked the former.

“It’s who we feel most comfortable with and who’s playing well and Reims deserves to backup the shutout he had the other night” says Wilson following Friday’s practice ahead of Saturday night’s game in Ottawa.

On the surface of it, it’s true.  A goaltender that goes without giving up a goal usually deserves to follow that performance up with another start in goal the following night.  However, there are usual exceptions to this rule are when you have a designated number one netminder

While Head Coach Ron Wilson has never anointed Gustavsson his starter, The month of January is hard to dispute.   The ‘Monster’ was 7-3-1 with three shutouts, a 2.08 GAA and save percentage of .926.  Prior to that stretch, Gustavsson had a pretty strong November, allowing the Leafs to get some key results in Reimer’s absence.

There are few things to take notice of when it comes to Reimer’s shutout performance against the Penguins.

1.  Shakiness from the start

Had Tyler Kennedy not hit the crossbar off his shot just 1:23 into the first period, we could very well be talking about a completely different hockey game.  There were several occasions where it appeared Reimer was battling the puck and to his credit, he rebounded well when needed in the third period.

“That’s motivation 101, if you played well you deserve to play a little more.  He won the game but he was perfect in the game so he deserves to get another shot” says Wilson.”

Reimer was hardly “perfect.”  There were a couple of chances in the third period that resulted in goal posts as well.  Sometimes you have to be lucky to be good and that happened with Reimer on Wednesday.

2. Lack of intensity from both clubs

With both teams playing the night before, there was a noticeable and significant lack of speed and jump from both teams for much of the game.  Gustavssson was tested in a far more difficult circumstance than Reimer’s game on Wednesday.  The situation allowed for Reimer to have a decent performance and once again to his credit, he did what he had to do.

In early January, Wilson decided to stop giving James Reimer every start and he virtually employed a ‘whomever is winning’ system.  Gustavssson has performed well and it’s a performance that must be nurtured.  The problem is, the Leafs future beyond this season in goal is unclear.  Gustavsson is in the final year of his contract and assessing a fair market value is difficult.  Reimer is in the first of a three-year contract that pays him $1.8 million per.  It’s not necessarily a starting goaltender’s salary, but it was a fair value for the limited sample size we saw in the previous season.

Gustavsson’s future with the Maple Leafs is a major question mark.  The Maple Leafs may decide to improve in that department down the road by adding a piece during the off-season.  But it’s very clear that the franchise is committed to Reimer and he’ll be given every opportunity to prove himself, while Gustavsson will have to continue to grind it out to get his chances.  If both players continue to play well, it will continue to be a good problem for the Leafs to have.  It starts in Ottawa for Reimer to show that Wednesday’s performance wasn’t just luck.

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