Drouin Posted July 26, 2013 Share Posted July 26, 2013 "The Penguins and Fleury mutually agreed to address his mental approach via a sports psychologist. Shero had previously asked Fleury to meet with one. It's finally happening this summer." [Tribune Review] Deserved or not, the indignities keep flying at Marc-Andre Fleury. First, his team shunned him. Now, his country. Could the entire world be next? “The Olympic thing, I'm not going to make too much of,” said Penguins general manager Ray Shero, busy with Team USA and not inclined to opine on Team Canada, which invited five goalies not named Fleury to its tryout camp. “But if he takes something personal, good for him.” Good for him, indeed. Maybe it's time Fleury got ticked off. It's time for him to take more ownership of his career and reclaim his lost reputation as a big-game goalie. The Penguins are making the right move in retaining Fleury, for these reasons: • He's still young (28) and highly productive in the regular season. This isn't exactly the golden age of goalies, you know. After Henrik Lundqvist, who has yet to play for a Cup, there aren't many goalies sporting lengthy resumes that scream, “franchise player!” At least you can pencil in Fleury for 35-plus wins. • A yet-to-be-named goalie coach will provide Fleury a new voice. • The Penguins and Fleury mutually agreed to address his mental approach via a sports psychologist. Shero had previously asked Fleury to meet with one. It's finally happening this summer. Good for the Penguins. Good for Fleury. These kinds of relationships happen across society, so of course they happen in sports. They're healthy. Pirates pitcher Charlie Morton benefited from such a relationship. So did Penguins winger Matt Cooke. Fleury doesn't have physical issues. His playoff failures would appear to be more in his head. “The playoffs are the question mark he's had the past four years,” Shero said. “I think it's probably something on his mind.” Shero expanded on the idea of talking things out with a professional. “Goalie is a delicate position, no different than a golfer or a tennis player: You're on your own a lot,” Shero said. “I think it's a good step for him, which he's really taken seriously since our year-end meeting. It's kind of like the situation with Matt Cooke in that you can't just hope you're going to come back and things are going to be different. “A lot of guys talk to somebody. It's a confidence thing.” Read more: http://triblive.com/...s#ixzz2a8SkhgFX Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canucks#01fan Posted July 26, 2013 Share Posted July 26, 2013 Hopefully he's not having any type of depression. I can see how he's having problems tho, he went from elite goalie to backup in a few short uears Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drouin Posted July 26, 2013 Author Share Posted July 26, 2013 Hopefully he's not having any type of depression. I can see how he's having problems tho, he went from elite goalie to backup in a few short uears Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coconuts Posted July 26, 2013 Share Posted July 26, 2013 I've got no idea what happened to this guy, but he's just come unglued come playoff time. Hopefully he can turn things around. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Apples Posted July 26, 2013 Share Posted July 26, 2013 Bryzgalov needs some severe psychologist help too Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Edlerberry Posted July 26, 2013 Share Posted July 26, 2013 Fleury has spent most of his career being consistently inconsistent. He only had a few years, coinciding when he got rid of those big yellow pads and coincidentally around the time he won the cup. Then he went back to his old ways but the team in front of him was so good nobody seemed to notice until it really started unraveling the last few years. Goalie is such a tough position to play in terms of mental pressure. He clearly has the physical talent but he is a total head-case. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drouin Posted July 26, 2013 Author Share Posted July 26, 2013 Bryzgalov needs some severe psychologist help too Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drouin Posted July 26, 2013 Author Share Posted July 26, 2013 Fleury has spent most of his career being consistently inconsistent. He only had a few years, coinciding when he got rid of those big yellow pads and coincidentally around the time he won the cup. Then he went back to his old ways but the team in front of him was so good nobody seemed to notice until it really started unraveling the last few years. Goalie is such a tough position to play in terms of mental pressure. He clearly has the physical talent but he is a total head-case. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baka Posted July 26, 2013 Share Posted July 26, 2013 Can't hurt. But personally I never understood why people even considered him some elite talent to begin with. 7 years in the playoffs, 1 strong year, 1 mediocre, and 5 painfully bad years. His season numbers are above average though he benefits from constantly playing behind loaded teams. Even so he was never an intimidating goalie I have seen numerous division rival games mid season throughout the years where he cracks and lets goals just flow in. I just never saw him as more than an average goalie who fell into a good gig. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swflyers28 Posted July 26, 2013 Share Posted July 26, 2013 he went from elite goalie to backup in a few short uyears Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Madness Posted July 26, 2013 Share Posted July 26, 2013 He has always been overrated. Very inconsistent. People just finally began to notice this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darth Kane Posted July 26, 2013 Share Posted July 26, 2013 Good move by Fleury. The guy is super talented by obviously something has got in the way of him being consistently successful. It would be a mental situation (i.e. anxiety) and if that's the case he can get the help he needs. Mental illnesses are no different than physical illnesses. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xbox Posted July 26, 2013 Share Posted July 26, 2013 He never was an elite goalie. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TOMapleLaughs Posted July 26, 2013 Share Posted July 26, 2013 Both Bryzgalov and Fleury have cup rings. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CanucksSayEh Posted July 26, 2013 Share Posted July 26, 2013 He literally scores on himself. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
apollo Posted July 26, 2013 Share Posted July 26, 2013 Honestly even the best of us need psychologists at one poiint of our lives. Especially all athletes. Hope he regains his confidence... but imo he's overrated. He can turn it around for sure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mpt Posted July 26, 2013 Share Posted July 26, 2013 This isn't big news, a lot of teams have a sport psychologist on staff. It's a great way to train mentally, many athletes use them on a regular basis. This isn't about counselling, they work on the mental aspect and preparation for performance. Very valuable stuff. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Brahma Bull Posted July 26, 2013 Share Posted July 26, 2013 I'm more surprised that he didn't see one earlier. It seems that the pens gm wanted him to see one earlier, but only now is fleury seeing one. hmmm. Maybe a little too much pride on fleury's part. He really needs one though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hockeyville88 Posted July 26, 2013 Share Posted July 26, 2013 I would have thought all the players were consulting with sports psychologists. Given the amount of pressure they're under to perform on a nightly basis, it would make sense no? Either way, good for Fleury. Goaltending is a tough job and when your confidence is shattered and the snubs keep coming, it feels like you'll never be good again and if feels like anything you ever have accomplished in your career doesn't matter anymore. You feel like no one trusts you and you have to prove yourself all over again. It's a lonely place to be. If a psychologist can talk him though the process and give him some different points of view and perspectives, it'll only help him rekindle the love for goaltending faster. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JPrince Posted July 26, 2013 Share Posted July 26, 2013 Hopefully he's not having any type of depression. I can see how he's having problems tho, he went from elite goalie to backup in a few short uears Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.