from Rory Boylen of Sportsnet,
With the help of former NHL scout Jason Bukala, here are six potential value goalies who may not have you jumping up and down with excitement if acquired this summer, but may look back on with a smile one day....
While Andersen settled Carolina's goalie situation in the regular season, Nedeljkovic struggled a lot more as a sophomore with the Wings, finishing with a .901 save percentage and one of the lowest Goals Saved Above Average totals in the league. But that was also behind a team that doesn't exactly thrive on defence or supporting its goalies. It was one extreme to the other in two years for Nedeljkovic -- perhaps the reality is somewhere in between.
Nedeljkovic's AAV is $3 million for one more season, after which he'll be a UFA, so perhaps the Wings would be open to trading him again and the acquisition cost shouldn't be prohibitive (and if it is, walk away). But again, we have a goalie with past pedigree, awards and even an outstanding NHL season behind him. Is there potential for a bounce back here?
Scout's Take: "If Detroit is entertaining offers, he's an interesting target. His $3 million AAV is fair when considering his year in Carolina two years ago. His season in Detroit will make some question his ability to be a 1B. He's not a No. 1 on his own. A butterfly goalie who tracks pretty well, has good gloves and can steal a game on occasion. He was under siege more in Detroit than Carolina and it shows in his stats. A team playing with structure can trust him to make saves. There were some nights he made puck plays, or let shots beat him, that left me dazed and confused."
more goalies...
Create an Account
In order to leave a comment, please create an account.