James Reimer 2023 player review: Starting goaltender by default

For goaltender James Reimer the story off the ice became so much more than the player on it. As most (all?) Sharks fans know Reimer made international headlines when he decided not to wear a Pride jersey during warmups in March 2023. He was the only Shark that did not participate.

Unfortunately, it was probably the most attention a Sharks goaltender received all season, and it has tainted Reimer’s time in San Jose.

For a majority of this review, we will separate the player on the ice from the person off the ice.

Reimer’s 2022-23 production

Reimer claimed the net early in the season, pushing Kaapo Kahkonen into a backuprole. But really, taking over as starting goaltender was more about Kahkonen’s failings than Reimer’s successes.

Like all of the goaltenders who played for San Jose this season, Reimer’s numbers were miserable. Reimer had only 12 wins this season and his goals against average was not much better than Kahkonen’s. Neither was his save percentage.

All of those losses can’t be hung on Reimer. There were nights when he stood on his head and the Sharks failed him. That said, there were also nights when the Sharks needed just one more save from the team’s goaltender and Reimer could not deliver.

Reimer’s performance at even strength

Looking at Reimer’s performance at even strength, it’s easy to see that he did not “steal” many games for San Jose.

He was worse than the team’s performance in front of him.

The stat on the left is the team’s expected Fenwick save percentage (xFSv%). It’s a stat that measures the save percentage a team should have if it received league average goaltending. It is based on the quality of scoring chances.

The chart above shows that San Jose wasn’t expected to do better than league average given the team’s performance on the ice. That said, Reimer’s Fenwick save percentage (FSv%) is even worse. In other words, Reimer’s performance this season was also below league average.

Put that together and you have a lot of goals going into the net that should not have.

Reimer’s performance short-handed

While it would be fair to criticize Reimer’s performance at even strength, his performance while the team was short-handed should be commended.

While the team was barely above league average in xFSv% on the penalty kill, Reimer was a cut above league average, and the players on the ice in front of him. As you can see, he overperformed in short-handed situations and should get some credit for how exceptional the Sharks’ penalty kill was this season.

Reimer’s future with the Sharks

Reimer is an unrestricted free agent (UFA) coming off a contract that paid him $2.25 million last season.

He will not be re-signed to the Sharks this offseason. Reimer simply isn’t a good enough player for the Sharks to re-sign. His refusal to wear the Pride night jersey is just a confirmation that he should not be in San Jose next season.

Reimer is 35 and offers no upside to the Sharks. There are younger, just as seasoned goaltenders on the free agent market that the Sharks can go after if they’re looking for a 1A/1B goaltender or a backup to Kahkonen.

Think Frederik Andersen. Either Adin Hill or Laurent Brossoit with the Golden Knights. Florida’s Alex Lyon might be looking for a place to land at a cheap price. What’s more, while it’s doubtful, one of the goaltending prospects may be ready to move up into a backup position.

The point is there are plenty of options out there that are much younger than Reimer and may come with a similar, or even smaller, price tag. There is no reason for General Manager Mike Grier to re-sign Reimer.

Editor’s Note: Over the next few weeks, we will be rolling out the player reviews for the San Jose Sharks. We realize there were a lot of guys rotating into and out of the lineup and some of the key depth players were traded. As a result, Fear the Fin plans to focus on the players that are 1) still with the Sharks and 2) played 20 or more games for San Jose this season.