MHH's 2014-15 Avalanche Season Analysis: Part 7 - Berra

Will Reto Berra be as bad as his record suggests?

c6hor8:

I’ll be honest, people need to shut the fuck up about Berra. It’s absolutely asinine to me. I just don’t get it. Such a small amount of time played.  Simply put, if he does actually suck then the Avs lost a 2nd round pick and Sami or Pickard take his spot. Or Roy finds another goalie. Not a big deal.  Varly still gets 65-70 games.

Sandie:

Can Varly play all 98 games next season?

SteveHouse:

Well honestly Berra is reaching meme status so it's really hard to gauge what people actually expect him to do. He literally can't be worse than last year because the team would replace him if he was, that would be disgraceful, but yeah, this backup goalie situation looks really dire. The bright spots on his resume are all small samples. Stuff like Worlds. Long stretches he's Not Good.

AJ:

I fear he will be, yes. Truly, I just don't think Reto Berra is a very good goalie. My high hope for him is to be a .910 goaltender and make the Avs passable on Varly's off-days. My big fear is that Berra reminds of us the Brian Elliott days and the team has to make a drastic decision regarding a young player they've already invested so much into.

Andi:

Considering how MHH seems to think a cardboard cutout of our coach would be a better goalie, no, I don't think Berra will be as bad as we fear... but I'm still concerned.  I think the team is going to give him a good shot at the gig first, and if he swims, great.  But if he sinks, Roy has no problems replacing players that don't help him win.  It's also possible one of the kids like Will, Pickard, or Aittokallio will challenge him for the job, or if worst comes to worst, we'll find a way to make do with a trade or a current UFA like Bryz, Brodeur, or Thomas.  There are options, but my hope is that working with Allaire and Varly throughout the year will get him where he needs to be.

mfured20:

I... I don't know.  I am not a Berra Believer, but I do trust that Francois Allaire did see something in the guy that he liked.  After seeing him in camp (the little tiny bit that I saw him in camp), his movement is better, and his comportment is more composed, but that glove...  Lets just say that I hope he doesn't start a significant number of games until he can be worked with more.  I will continue to reserve judgment, but I do think we will see him be a capable, tho not stellar, back up goaltender.

Angelique:

The acquisition of Berra is one of the few head scratchers of the Sakic/Roy regime. I’m all for giving the benefit of the doubt, but I would have rathered the Avs held on to the second round pick and bring in a veteran behind Varly.

Earl:

Now that we've had a chance to see Berra a little in pre-season, I've downgraded my concerns to "troubling" from "freak out". Justin from the Goalie Guild had some positive things to say about him on the MHH podcast over the weekend,  which reinforces that. Other than the 2 goals on 1st 2 shots deal in Anaheim he's been fairly solid for a backup so far.

I'd like to see him do well, he's such a goofball in interviews, we need more of that.

Mike:

You mean the CHL level goalie that everybody claims he is?  yeah, he'll be better than that.  Not sure he can win 8-10 games though.  Depends on the D and he still has some serious adjusting to do to the North American ice and game.

Cheryl:

I sure as hell hope not.