from Wyatt Arndt of the Legion of Blog at the Vancouver Province,

Now, trading Eddie Lack wouldn’t be the end of the world. It’s not an obvious franchise breaking move to trade a goalie with only two seasons under his belt. Sure, Eddie Lack is a fan favorite and with good reason. He’s somebody who has connected with the city, as people in Vancouver love cheering the guy on. He created a buzz in the rink last year with the “Eddie!” chants that just aren’t there for Ryan Miller. Maybe it was because Eddie was there with Vancouver when Roberto and Cory went through their messy divorce, and they just want a little stability in their lives. Maybe it was because he openly loves tacos. Whatever the reason is, Eddie quickly became a fan favorite.

As important as making the fans happy at the rink is, however, that is superficial reasoning at best to keep him around. Ryan Miller could openly hate the Seawall and Tim Horton’s, but if he won the Cup in Vancouver, he’d still get a statue made of him.

The reason trading Eddie Lack wouldn’t sit well with people is because the return on him will most likely be poor, and because Ryan Miller’s contract is all kinds of awful (at least the term is short?), especially in a league where not many goalies are worth six million dollars to begin with. It means less cap space, which means less chances of picking up a player in a position they need more help in. It will mean the Canucks are relying on Miller not to get injured or tired next year (Willie D loves riding his starter), and that Markstrom is finally, finally NHL ready. It’s a tough sell from the outside looking in, and it will lead to a critiquing of Jim Benning’s ideology.

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