IN THE BIN by Lloyd Freeberg 1998
Trevor Kidd will never skate directly to his net, but will always skate first over the center ice face-off dot. As the Ducks' David Karpa found out, preventing Kidd from doing this by standing on the dot can bring about a very hostile reaction.
HOT GOALIES by Stan Fischler with Chico Resch 1997
Trevor Kidd is one of the most active goalies ever to come into the National Hockey League. He is a ball of energy, movement and aggressiveness. At times he is like a small whirlwind between the pipes. He pivots, turns, dives from left to right. Trevor's trademark has always been his incredible quickness and reflexes. In Junior Hockey he was flamboyant and utterly fearless. Most of all, he was fun to watch. You might have seen him trapped out of position and were positive he were going to be scored upon, then swoosh! A glove, a leg, or his entire body would miraculously appear and Trevor Kidd would perform another goaltending gem. Trevor was so adept at covering any technical bad habits he may have developed up through his Junior career, that when they were exposed at the pro level, it was a surprise.
Trevor is going through the learning process that most young goalies must experience. Playing consistently well in the NHL is about balance and control and tight, compact movements that do not create shooting holes around the perimeter of the body. The old goaltending adage says, "It's not so much the ones that go by you that hurt, it is the shots that go through you that sting."
What Trevor needs to do to improve is tighten up his style and play in a more controlled fashion. This is not necessarily a major adjustment, but it does take a lot of concentration.
Kidd is now at the crossroads. Calgary missed the playoffs in 1996-97, the coach,Pierre Page, left and the Flames decided to trade for Rick Tabaracci who will compete with Kidd for number one. Understandably, Trevor was disappointed when he heard about the deal because he figured that it would stall his progression. Actually, it could help. Granted Kidd may not play as much, but he can learn from Tabaracci who has gone through similar challenges as well and overcome them.
Tabaracci had been an inconsistent goalie when he was younger. He was flamboyant and overactive. He has since refined his play and is much more reliable. He may help Kidd learn to get over the hump in the same way. It's not a matter of making the spectacular saves, but being consistent enough to eliminate any clunkers.
Kidd has a lot of positive traits, foremost of which is his burning desire to play and improve. For him it's just a matter of arranging and adjusting a few moves and then he will be terrific.
