Jaroslav Halak Pro Reads
With Jaroslav Halak
Shoot or pass? Halak Hedges his bet while reading 3 on 2 vs vegas
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Jaroslav Halak is coming off an impressive season with the New York Rangers, going 10-9-5 despite some tough situation starts and posting a +1.3 adjusted save percentage that ranked 10th in the NHL (just behind playing partner Igor Shesterkin’s +1.4) to close within five wins of 300 in his NHL career, an impressive milestone that listeners of the InGoal Radio Podcast will know means a lot to the 5-foot-11 goalie from Slovakia.
Halak sat down for an extended video session in Vancouver in February, and it was no surprise a goalie who prides himself on making good reads had a lot of great insights to offer in the Pro Reads format. Halak is back to share more of them in his fourth installment.
THE SEQUENCE
After walking us through a 2-on-1 led by Vegas Golden Knights sniper Jack Eichel in his last Pro Reads, this time Halak is dealing with a quick regroup transition just outside the blue line that turns into a 3-on-2 rush against those same Golden Knights who are 1 win from a Cup Final.
As the attacking players approach the top of the faceoff circle, what factors are you looking for as you try to read this situation and who represents the most likely – and most dangerous – option to score? What do you think of Halak’s depth and relaxed stance at this point?
THE SAVE
Like most rush chances, speed matters when making those reads, so rather than posting more freeze frames, watch the entire save sequence and ask yourself the same questions:
Seeing how this unfolded, what stood out to you about the way Halak managed this play?
Do you think a left-handed puck carrier is more of less likely to shoot here?
THE PRO READ
Let’s hear how Halak read the attack and his keys to managing it:
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- Halak breaks down his save on a 3-on-2 transition rush against the Vegas Golden Knights, walking through his reads as the play develops past the faceoff circle.
- Halak identified both backdoor options as right-handed shooters before the play developed, which shaped how he cheated his positioning toward the back door.
- Halak explains that cheating toward the backdoor option requires balance — shading too far surrenders the short side, so the adjustment must be subtle.
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