Joel Castle reversing his fall from grace?

[animal74 1,620]

  What a descent into averageness has befallen last season’s playoff MVP goalie Joel Castle of the Toronto Legion. One of the top goalies the last two seasons, Castle has not been playing up to his usual standards until recently and the stats show. He hasn’t placed in any of the Top-10 statistical lists for most of the season – at one point sporting a dismal 2.95 GAA with the Legion bouncing in and out of a play-in spot.

 

“I knew something had to change,” said Castle during yesterday’s post-game scrum after one of his better performances of the season, a 4-3 SOL to rival Los Angeles where he stopped 42 shots. “I talked to our goalie coach, we looked at some film from last season and made some tweaks to a couple of bad habits I’ve been getting into. Nothing major, just some stylistic changes and how I push off from the post. I’ve also changed some of my workout routine to maintain my flexibility after such a long season last year. And, I’m not getting any younger.”

 

The results, at least in net, have been positive as Castle is back to his stellar form. Over the last seven games he's posted a 1.84 GAA on 13 goals against, a 0.936 SV% and earned his first shutout of the season. Unfortunately, his better play hasn’t necessarily translated to a big boost in the standings as the Legion have only scored 16 goals in that span going 3-3-1. Even with an improved power play, they’re still ranked last in the VHL with the man advantage. They’ll have to do better then that to secure a spot in the playoffs to defend their championship.

 

Edited January 29 by animal74

[UghSike 211]

Great job! This was well-composed, and read like an official article in a magazine or a sports site. I like how you included valid stats and some quotes from the player made this feel organic. Good luck in your season!