The San Jose Sharks need a goaltender. Obvious, I know. The crop of free agent goaltenders isn’t pretty but there may be some salvageable talent available that would be an upgrade over Antti Niemi.
Devan Dubnyk could be one.
For Dubnyk it’s a complete crapshoot for whoever signs him. Is he the Devan Dubnyk that was cast aside like garbage from Edmonton and given away a few times over after that? Or is he the Vezina Trophy candidate Devan Dubnyk that put the hockey world upside down with his Carey Price-like play for the Minnesota Wild?
Dubnyk is an interesting player to watch this offseason. He’s due for some money. You can’t have the year he had and not get a good chunk of change. I’m not talking $6M money, but he should be getting a hefty raise on the $800K he was on the books for this season. Is he worth taking a flier on? That depends on how much of a raise he wants – and how much term he thinks he can squeeze out of a desperate GM.
There’s no way I would give Devan Dubnyk anything longer than two years, and I’d probably hesitate at going beyond one. Sure, it could burn you financially if he has another superhuman season, but you have to protect yourself in the event this season was a freak accident. History is not on Devan Dubnyk’s side.
Andrew Hammond had a nice story this year but that’s probably all it will ever be so I’ll pass on the Hamburglar. Eddie Lack isn’t worth wasting time on. He starts because Miller is worse. Roberto Luongo put a hex on the Canucks crease when he left for Florida.
The Sharks could always look for a trade for Jonathan Bernier, who I don’t believe for a second is as bad as people want to make him to be because of what happened in Toronto this year. Or, here’s a wild one, they could offer sheet Braden Holtby. I love offer sheets. I think they’re hilarious and not used nearly enough. Washington isn’t going to trade Holtby so someone might as well put a sheet in on him. Why not San Jose? On the off chance the Capitals take the compensation the Sharks still win despite the bag of picks going back. Starting goaltenders are hard to find.
The bottom line is that the Sharks need a goalie and they likely won’t find a sure fire starter in the free agent pool this year so they’re going to have to take a chance on someone for a 1-2 year deal to get them through to the next batch of goalies unless they make a deal for one.
I could see them try to get Niemi to sign a one year deal simply because there aren't great options. That's not ideal but it certainly won't be as bad as I'll make it out to be if it happens.
Does Wilson have the stones to pull off a deal to bring in a goalie? My guess is no, but it sure would make the offseason fun if he did. My vote stays with a Bernier trade as it was earlier in the year. What do you think? Who would you like to see in the crease for San Jose next year, even if it’s only for one year?