343 Parents: Metrics, Irony, and a new Shot Tracking App
In the Parent Segment, presented by Stop it Goaltending U the App, we look at metrics, Irony, and a new Shot Tracking App.
Okay goalie parents — this one’s for you. And yes, it comes with some irony.
If you’ve listened to InGoal for a while, you know how I feel about traditional goalie stats. Not all shots are created equal. A clear point shot through no traffic and a backdoor one-timer after a seam pass count the same on the scoresheet. One shot. A completely different problem.
That’s why I’ve always said save percentage is a team statistic. Structure, coverage, breakdowns — what happens in front of your goalie shapes that number as much as anything your kid does. Judging a goalie off one game’s save percentage without context just doesn’t make sense.
Which makes this next part funny: I built a shot tracking app. I’d love for your to check it out here.
Here’s why. Parents ask for it constantly. They want to stay engaged during games. So I thought — if we’re going to track shots, let’s do it in a way that reflects what we actually believe.
In fact I called it SAVE TRACKER because let’s focus on the positive.
Yes, it tracks shots, goals, save percentage and game totals. You get emailed game reports, game history, and it works offline in rinks with terrible reception. InGoal members can see their history right inside Membership Central. As a basic tracker, it does everything you’d expect.
But here’s the part that matters.
After every game, you’re prompted to write down one thing you noticed that has nothing to do with the result. Something process-based. Something about their habits, their reads, their compete level, their response after a goal.
Because that’s what your goalie actually needs from you.
Those notes show up in your game report along with a reminder — because I can’t help myself — that numbers without context don’t tell the whole story.
If you want deeper context and true shot quality analysis, I still point people toward tools like SIG’s GameDay app that layer in expected goals and expected save percentage. That’s the most objective performance lens we have right now.
This tracker isn’t trying to replace that. It’s meant to guide parent attention.
It’s completely free to use at the basic level. It’s a web app — not in the app store — but when you save it to your home screen it behaves just like a native app. First five game reports are on us. Members get ten reports per month, which covers most families.
You’ll find it in the Parents section at ingoalmag.com.
Track if you want. Don’t track if you don’t.
But whatever the numbers say after the final buzzer, make sure you can name something your goalie did well — something within their control.
That’s the point.
Let me know what you think: parents at InGoalMag.com
- Save percentage is a team statistic — not all shots are equal, and structure breakdowns in front of the goalie shape the number as much as goalie performance does.
- The Save Tracker app tracks shots, goals, save percentage, and game totals, works offline in rinks with poor reception, and emails game reports with full history.
- After every game, Save Tracker prompts parents to write one process-based observation unrelated to the result — focusing on habits, reads, compete level, or response to goals.
- InGoal members can access their full game history directly inside Membership Central.
- Numbers without context don't tell the whole story — Save Tracker includes a built-in reminder of this alongside every game report.
This segment is from Episode 343: Top Women’s Goalie of the 2026 Olympics, Switzerland’s Andrea Braendli.
Episode Transcript
Let's get technical with Hutch.
I write these ones up every week, guys, and I give them a title. Don't usually use it, but this week, metrics, irony, and a shot tracker. So here we go, goalie parents. This one's for you. And as I said, it does come with some irony.
If you've listened to InGoal for a while, you know how I feel about traditional goalie stats. I like to get on my soapbox and go all Woody snaptastic about them.
Not all shots. Me some goals against average.
Yeah. There you go. Not all shots are created equal. A clear point shot through no traffic and a backdoor one timer after a seam pass count exactly the same on a score sheet. One shot.
Save percentage is a team statistic. Structure, coverage, breakdowns, what happens in front of your goalie shapes that number as much as anything your kid does. Judging a goalie especially off a single game save percentage without context just doesn't make sense.
But, of course, we know they're completely different issues for goaltenders to deal with. That's why I've always said that save percentage is a team statistic. Structure, coverage, breakdowns, what happens in front of your goalie shapes that number as much as anything your kid does. Judging a goalie especially off a single game save percentage without context just doesn't make sense. Drives me nuts.
And now we see media reporting the listing of the save percentage for a goalie per game. I I just think it's ridiculous, which makes this next part funny. I just built a shot tracking app, guys. What? I call it a save tracking app.
Look, I had to scratch this itch. I needed to test something and I needed, an app to to make to do this little testing. So of course, I I I dove in and I made a shot tracking app. And here's why. There are parents asking for them consistently.
There are lots out there, but I still see them asking, what are you guys using to track your kids shots and and goals and so on? And fair enough. They wanna stay engaged during games and they wanna contribute. They wanna help. So I thought if we're gonna track shots, let's do it at least with a little bit of a way that reflects what what I actually believe.
So, I called it save tracker by the way because because I think we should focus on the positive. And it tracks your shots. It tracks your goals and save percentage and game totals. You get emailed game reports after the game. You get a game history that you can check out all of them, and it even works offline in rinks that have terrible reception.
And InGoal members can actually go to your membership central and see the history of the games you've tracked there as well as in the app. As a basic tracker, and that's all it is, it does everything you'd expect and I think it does it pretty well. I'm kind of proud of it. But here's the part that matters. After every game, when you get your game review, you're prompted as a parent to write down one thing that you noticed that has nothing to do with the result because you know I believe in things being process based.
Something about their habits, their reads, their compete level, their response. It's up to you, but notice something because that's what your goalie really needs from you. Those notes show up in your game report when it gets emailed to you along with a reminder because I just can't help myself that numbers without context don't tell the whole story. If you want deeper context and you want true shot quality analysis, I still point people towards tools like Stop It Goal Tending's game day app that layer expected goals and expected save percentage. I think it's a great tool.
I've used it myself. It's the most objective performance lens that we as parents at least have right now. My tracker is not trying to replace that. It's just meant to, let's say, guide goalie parent attention. Completely free to use at the basic level.
Always will be. It's right now, it's just a web app, but if you dial it up on your phone, you will swear you're using an app straight from the app store and you can even save it onto your home screen of your phone and it works like a native app. The first five game reports are on us. Doesn't cost you a thing. There is an expense to running out those game reports, so we have to limit that.
If you're an InGoal member though, you get 10 of them a month and you can even, find cheap excuse me, freeways to, to get more of those as well over at membership central. You will find the app itself by going to the parent section at ingoalmag.com. There's a link there. Track if you want to track your kid with this. You don't want to track your kid, don't.
I actually don't. But whatever the numbers say after the final buzzer, make sure you can name something your goalie did well, something within their control, because to me, that's the point. Give it a look. Let me know what you think. parents@ingoalmag.com.
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