We Need a Goaltender Thread!

[egroen 384]

Ok - I thought it might be handy to have a direct source for impending UFA and RFA goalies.

If you want to talk about options, here is a great place to do so.

If you do not, here is a great thread to ignore.

UFAs

Nikolai Khabibulin G CHI $6,750,000

Manny Fernandez G BOS $4,750,000

Martin Gerber G OTT $3,700,000

Martin Biron G PHI $3,500,000

Nicklas Backstrom G MIN $3,100,000

Dwayne Roloson G EDM $3,000,000

Manny Legace G STL $2,500,000

Olaf Kolzig G WSH $1,500,000

Antero Niittymaki G PHI $1,375,000

Tim Thomas G BOS $1,100,000

Mathieu Garon G PIT $1,000,000

Fredrik Norrena G CBJ $900,000

Jason Labarbera G VAN $850,000

Brent Johnson G WAS $825,000

Mikael Tellqvist G PHX $800,000

Ty Conklin G DET $750,000

Stephen Valiquette G NYR $725,000

Erik Ersberg G LA $700,000

Curtis Joseph G TOR $700,000

Kevin Weekes G NJ $700,000

Brian Boucher G SJ $650,000

Curtis Sanford G VAN $650,000

Nolan Schaefer G MIN $600,000

Craig Anderson G FLA $575,000

Jean-Sebastien Aubin G PHI $550,000

Yann Danis G NYI $550,000

Dany Sabourin G EDM $525,000

Scott Clemmensen G NJ $500,000

Brent Krahn G CGY $500,000

Joey MacDonald G NYI $500,000

Drew MacIntyre G NSH $500,000

RFAs

Kari Lehtonen* G ATL $3,000,000

Devan Dubnyk G EDM $984,200

Marek Schwarz G STL $984,200

Antti Niemi* G CHI $875,000

Peter Budaj* G COL $800,000

Brian Elliott G OTT $757,720

Josh Harding* G MIN $750,000

Thomas Greiss G SJ $725,000

Karri Ramo G TB $725,000

Kevin Regan* G BOS $720,000

Jason Bacashihua* G COL $708,092

Justin Peters G CAR $675,000

Corey Crawford* G CHI $660,000

Matt Climie* G DAL $650,000

David Shantz G FLA $650,000

David Brown G PIT $610,000

David Leneveu* G ANA $600,000

Taylor Dakers G SJ $585,000

Peter Mannino* G NYI $550,000

Justin Pogge G TOR $550,000

Dan Turple G ATL $550,000

Julien Ellis-Plante G VAN $525,000

Daniel Lacosta G CBJ $525,000

Josh Tordjman G PHX $525,000

Jeff Glass* G OTT $522,500

Daniel Manzato* G CAR $522,500

Matt Zaba* G NYR $522,500

Adam Dennis G BUF $520,000

Daniel Taylor G LA $517,500

John Curry G PIT $500,000

Curtis McElhinney* G CGY $500,000

Darcy Machesney G WSH $490,000

Tobias Stephan* G DAL $485,000

Chris Holt* G STL $475,000

Loic Lacasse G MTL $475,000

Tyler Weiman* G COL $475,000

* Are arbitration elgible

The Red Wings could literally pick up a salary of close to $4,000,000 on March 4th, without exceeding their cap allowance, and without trading a roster player. I am using the following site as a source:

http://www.nhlscap.com/teamnumbers.htm

Edited February 16, 2009 by egroen

[Guest Shoreline]

At least Boston has been getting their money's worth on Thomas. Wonder what kind of fat raise he'll get from 1.1m. Maybe he, Hossa, Jagr, Fedorov, and Gretzky would take a hometown discount to play for the Wings.

[YoungGuns1340 1]

Here's a link to an article that offers some insight on the possibility of adding Backstrom at the deadline: http://www.startribune.com/sports/wild/395...L7PQLanchO7DiUr

Q What's your gut feeling? Does the Wild re-sign Niklas Backstrom before the March 4 trade deadline or trade him?

A I waver from day to day. It could be neither. The Wild has a great relationship with Backstrom's agent, Don Baizley. Maybe the Wild figures it can negotiate with Backstrom after the season. But yes, that would be a huge risk. The Wild got only a fourth-round pick for Brian Rolston's rights. It got nothing for Pavol Demitra. If the Wild trades Marian Gaborik, it'll receive a lot less than it could have gotten before he was injured. So if the Wild loses Backstrom for nothing, that's catastrophic for a franchise not exactly overstuffed with assets.

That's why the Wild might be forced to trade Backstrom even in the thick of the playoff race. As owner Craig Leipold said in last Sunday's Star Tribune, "[GM Doug Risebrough will] do what is best for this franchise ... long-term, not just ... the last 20 games."

I think sanity would prevail here and the Wild would extend Backstrom's contract, but the team has waited so long, his asking price could be through the roof. I think even if the Wild manages to re-sign him, the team erred. When it became painfully obvious that Gaborik wasn't going to re-sign in September, the Wild should immediately have focused on Backstrom. It didn't, and now the Wild might be forced to pay several million more than it could have or lose its backbone.

I think Filppula for Backstrom fits the mold of "getting an asset" for Backstrom. The Wild have a great goaltender in Harding, too. Trading Backstrom doesn't ruin their chances like trading your starter would for most teams. Filppula seems exactly like the kind of "Wild forward" and would get the minutes he needs. Hes also signed long-term reasonably. And as I've said elsewhere, the Wings can afford to lose a forward, and they're going to lose one anyways.

Edited February 16, 2009 by YoungGuns1340

[lets go pavel 2]

Here's a link to an article that offers some insight on the possibility of adding Backstrom at the deadline: http://www.startribune.com/sports/wild/395...L7PQLanchO7DiUr

I think Filppula for Backstrom fits the mold of "getting an asset" for Backstrom. The Wild have a great goaltender in Harding, too. Trading Backstrom doesn't ruin their chances like trading your starter would for most teams. Filppula seems exactly like the kind of "Wild forward" and would get the minutes he needs. Hes also signed long-term reasonably. And as I've said elsewhere, the Wings can afford to lose a forward, and they're going to lose one anyways.

Backstrom is pretty much the only one on the list that would be a significant upgrade to me, but what are our chances of re-signing him? I assume he'll get a raise next year and beyond ... can we afford to keep him? If not, where does that leave us for next year? Trading for another goalie would seem out of the question, and going back to Ozzie as starter would seem to be a step backward. Would the Wings be comfortable bringing up Howard/Larsson as starter and having Ozzie as the back-up?

[OsGOD 3]

At least Boston has been getting their money's worth on Thomas. Wonder what kind of fat raise he'll get from 1.1m. Maybe he, Hossa, Jagr, Fedorov, and Gretzky would take a hometown discount to play for the Wings.

lol apart from fedorov (who still has a home here) have the others you listed even lived in Michigan more than staying in a hotel for game days?

[egroen 384]

I think Filppula for Backstrom fits the mold of "getting an asset" for Backstrom. The Wild have a great goaltender in Harding, too. Trading Backstrom doesn't ruin their chances like trading your starter would for most teams. Filppula seems exactly like the kind of "Wild forward" and would get the minutes he needs. Hes also signed long-term reasonably. And as I've said elsewhere, the Wings can afford to lose a forward, and they're going to lose one anyways.

If things do not turn around, Backstrom would be a great goalie to go after -- how many goalie "buyers" will there be at the deadline? Not many, me thinks. That said - Filppula (signed for 4 more years at $3m per season) for Backstrom (looming UFA) is a huge overpayment. Detroit does not have to trade a roster player if they want to add Backstrom (and he is available). Think 2nd round and a prospect or a 1st round pick -- and that is only if there is a high demand for him.

If we were talking Filppula for Backstrom, Minnesota should be sending us picks and prospects along with Backstrom for Filppula.

Edited February 16, 2009 by egroen

[YoungGuns1340 1]

Backstrom is pretty much the only one on the list that would be a significant upgrade to me, but what are our chances of re-signing him? I assume he'll get a raise next year and beyond ... can we afford to keep him? If not, where does that leave us for next year? Trading for another goalie would seem out of the question, and going back to Ozzie as starter would seem to be a step backward. Would the Wings be comfortable bringing up Howard/Larsson as starter and having Ozzie as the back-up?

This is my perspective:

Yes, I agree. If we are going to trade assets for a goaltender, it has to be Backstrom. Hes easily a top 10 goaltender. With that said - do I think we can retain him next year? No, I do not. He'll cost too much. But regardless of Backstrom, if we sign Hossa to a $6M deal, we will lose one of Filppula, Franzen, or Hudler anyways. Do we essentially trade one of our forwards for a rental? Yes. Yes we do.

But this is where I think the Wings have to eat some assets. They did the same thing with Bertuzzi - traded Matthias and a pick for nothing. But Bertuzzi wasn't putting the Wings over the edge in the playoffs. Backstrom CAN do that for the Wings. That's why I think you sacrifice trading for Backstrom at the expense of a forward.

To summarize, if the Wings DONT improve their goaltending, they don't better their playoff chances. Yet they'll get a pick or a prospect - likely a Bertuzzi package - a 2nd round pick and a decent prospect.

If the Wings DO improve their goaltending, they have a better shot at the cup, and they DON'T get the extra 2nd round pick/prospect.

It depends on what you think:

1. Better playoff odds with Backstrom ---> losing a forward, losing a 2nd round pick and prospect.

OR

2. A 2nd round pick and a prospect ---> losing a forward, having problematic goaltending that could cost us a Cup.

Which do you choose? Personally, I think we all know when we're going to reap the benefits of trading Hudler or Flip for a 2nd round pick and a prospect, or something around that. We won't see the prospect for a few years, and even longer for whoever is taken with that 2nd rounder. So essentially, what everyone here is concerned about are a couple of players that are going to have minimal affects on the Wings in 3-5 years. That, in my eyes, doesn't justify going into these playoffs with the worst goaltending of all 16 teams.

[YoungGuns1340 1]

If things do not turn around, Backstrom would be a great goalie to go after -- how many goalie "buyers" will there be at the deadline? Not many, me thinks. That said - Filppula (signed for 4 more years at $3m per season) for Backstrom (looming UFA) is a huge overpayment. Detroit does not have to trade a roster player if they want to add Backstrom (and he is available). Think 2nd round and a prospect or a 1st round pick.

If we were talking Filppula for Backstrom, Minnesota should be sending us picks and prospects along with Backstrom for Filppula.

I respectfully disagree completely. Backstrom simply will not be traded for future assets. The Wild have gotten the short end of the stick too many times by both seeing UFAs go, and being unable to attract offensive players on the open market. They're a playoff team now, and have many key pieces to that. They're going to want young players who can help them now and help them to break through the playoff cusp.

In particular, our competition is Ottawa and Philly. Ottawa wouldn't think twice about shedding Vermette for Backstrom if they found his contract demands worthy - I question this though, because Murray is an idiot and rarely offers the deserved raises. However, Philly on the other hand is in a great situation. Like the Wings, they're stacked up front, especially now that Briere is healthy. Biron and Niitymaki are both FAs, and they can cut Knuble's payroll in half, if they choose to re-sign him next season. Otherwise, the only forward they need to re-sign is Upshall. Essentially, Philly wouldn't have to sacrifice much to re-sign Backstrom to a deal worth up to 5M per year before the deadline, so their trading for a rental is a lesser concern than it is for the Wings. Finally, both Lupul and Hartnell's names have been in the rumor mill already, as Holmgrem is thought to be dangling either in exchange for a goaltender or an upgrade on the back-end. Like the Wings, Philly can sacrifice depth up from and still improve if it comes in the form of a Dman or goaltender. And make no mistake - Hartnell or Lupul - perhaps more, would look good to a Wild team thats going to lose Gaborik already and has a hard time attracting top 6ers as is.

In short, the Wings are going to have to offer Filppula. A few areas where I think the Wings have the upperhand is that Filppula costs 1M+ fewer than Hartnell or Lupul, and only .3 more than Vermette, yet hes putting up better numbers than Vermette. He's also the youngest of the pack, and wouldn't hurt the Wings if we were forced to trade him.

[egroen 384]

I respectfully disagree completely. Backstrom simply will not be traded for future assets. The Wild have gotten the short end of the stick too many times by both seeing UFAs go, and being unable to attract offensive players on the open market. They're a playoff team now, and have many key pieces to that. They're going to want young players who can help them now and help them to break through the playoff cusp.

In particular, our competition is Ottawa and Philly. Ottawa wouldn't think twice about shedding Vermette for Backstrom if they found his contract demands worthy - I question this though, because Murray is an idiot and rarely offers the deserved raises. However, Philly on the other hand is in a great situation. Like the Wings, they're stacked up front, especially now that Briere is healthy. Biron and Niitymaki are both FAs, and they can cut Knuble's payroll in half, if they choose to re-sign him next season. Otherwise, the only forward they need to re-sign is Upshall. Essentially, Philly wouldn't have to sacrifice much to re-sign Backstrom to a deal worth up to 5M per year before the deadline, so their trading for a rental is a lesser concern than it is for the Wings. Finally, both Lupul and Hartnell's names have been in the rumor mill already, as Holmgrem is thought to be dangling either in exchange for a goaltender or an upgrade on the back-end. Like the Wings, Philly can sacrifice depth up from and still improve if it comes in the form of a Dman or goaltender. And make no mistake - Hartnell or Lupul - perhaps more, would look good to a Wild team thats going to lose Gaborik already and has a hard time attracting top 6ers as is.

In short, the Wings are going to have to offer Filppula. A few areas where I think the Wings have the upperhand is that Filppula costs 1M+ fewer than Hartnell or Lupul, and only .3 more than Vermette, yet hes putting up better numbers than Vermette. He's also the youngest of the pack, and wouldn't hurt the Wings if we were forced to trade him.

Ottawa will be selling at the trade deadline, not buying.

But yes, I see Philly as the only real possible competition for a goaltender. I see defensemen as having the most value this trade deadline.

Lupul is almost a salary dump for Philly -- Next year he is making $4.25m for the next four years, and has been pretty riddled with injuries the past couple years. I dunno if Minnesota wants that price tag, or if Philly will focus more on trying to get a Bouwmeester or Pronger type defender.

I still think Filppula is WAY too much for a rental alone.

Edited February 16, 2009 by egroen

[YoungGuns1340 1]

Ottawa will be selling at the trade deadline, not buying.

But yes, I see Philly as the only real possible competition for a goaltender. I see defensemen as having the most va;ue this trade deadline.

Lupul is almost a salary dump for Philly -- Next year he is making $4.25m for the next four years, and has been pretty riddled with injuries the past couple years. I dunno if Minnesota wants that price tag, or if Philly will focus more on trying to get a Bouwmeester or Pronger type defender.

I still think Filppula is WAY too much for a rental.

Ottawa will be selling, yes, but Vermetter is one of those guys they're going to be selling, and he'd be an ideal piece to attract Backstrom in return. I say this, because, the way Murray has handled things this year, I think he still thinks his team doesn't have issues. I don't think hes going for an all-out rebuild, but a "rebuild" similar to what Philly went through a couple years ago. But then again - this is Murray. He should've be taken out with the trash.

At any rate, I agree both with your assessments of Philly and Filppula. It would be an overpayment. But we've overpaid before. Matthias and a 2nd is close to Filppula's value now, and was a little less at the time, but Bertuzzi didn't have nearly the value that Backstrom does now. Bertuzzi also wasn't needed nearly as much as Backstrom is.

Ultimately, I'm not saying we're definitely going to get Backstrom. But I'm also not saying that if we don't get him, that Kenny didn't try to. The biggest thing for me is that the future of the Wings is so uncertain. Realistically, is this team going to be better in the next few years than it is now? We know we're going to lose a forward, and likely replace Howard with Conklin next year - we cant afford to give Holland a raise. If we retain Hossa, we'll have to lose two forwards. Either way, next season looks like the same goaltending, same defense, but weaker offense. And the year after that, does Lidstrom retire? If he doesn't retire, is he still going to play like Lidstrom? And this is all in expectation of the salary cap potentially dropping into the 40s, which means we'd have to cut payroll even further.

Now, what I'm not saying is that the Wings are going to be a bottom-feeder in a few years. But what I am saying is, what are the odds that we're going to have as strong a team that we have now within the next few years? I'm not saying it can't happen, but to say the Wings are going to keep this pace up in the coming years sounds like counting your chickens before they hatch. Thats why I say go for it.

[Guest Shoreline]

lol apart from fedorov (who still has a home here) have the others you listed even lived in Michigan more than staying in a hotel for game days?

No idea, I'm too busy making fun of people to check facts.