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Outside of all the Nazam Kadri, Jake Gardiner, and Dion Phaneuf discussions concerning the Toronto Maple Leafs, one of the bigger stories has been the debate toward who will backstop Jon Bernier going into the 2014-15 NHL season.
With current netminder James Reimer about to hit RFA status come July 1st, the Leafs have an important decision to make; extend Reimer creating a 1A/1B situation, or sign an experienced backup to support Bernier instead. It appears, after many discussions, that most if not many fans seem to be in favour of the latter scenario in which Toronto finds someone who can complement Bernier, rather than continue to challenge for his job. And here’s the thing – most would typically be in favour of having two strong goalies who constantly push each other, however in Toronto, the lead position has been earned and given to Bernier. That said, it should stand to reason that the club proves their confidence in Jon by moving Reimer to a team who is still in search for a possible number one guy in the near future.
With that established, I would like to offer a few names who I feel could be of interest from the Leafs organization to replace Reimer in no particular order. Take note, I will only list netminders who are available through free agency, as I do not feel that it would be wise for the team to entertain making any trades for this particular position, unless it were a package of sorts.
I digress.
First up is Justin Peters from the Carolina Hurricanes.
Peters, 27, will be entering his 6th NHL season as a backup and will be looking for a new contract as he remains unsigned by the Canes. Justin signed a two year, $1.05M deal with Carolina two years ago and with Anton Khudobin currently backstopping Cam Ward, the Canes are not likely to extend the tender.
Peters posted a respectable 2.50GAA and .901SV% last season with Carolina in 21 games played. He is very much accustomed to the backup role and could be the perfect candidate to grow with the young Leafs team as a short term or possible long term solution, stats dependent. While he’s not likely the first or even second name to come to many fans minds, at 27 he is still young and could be a cheap bargain for Toronto who will want to spend their cap dollars elsewhere.
Second on the list is Al Montoya.
While Montoya may be a little older at 29 years than is Peters, their level of NHL experience is rather similar. Montoya will also be entering his 6th NHL season, however he has logged more games per year than has Peters over the past three seasons.
In addition to the above, Al’s most recent numbers with the Winnipeg Jets are slightly better than Peters with a 2.30GAA and 0.920SV% throughout 28 games. To note, both netminders played for struggling teams over the past few years and as such, there shouldn’t be too much stock placed into their stats. That said, I personally like either of the two above options for Toronto, if they are looking to stay young.
Conversely, if the thought is to get an experienced, veteran netminder, there could be the option of Evgeni Nabakov from the New York Islanders who will finally be released of his duties come July 1st. For those who I’ve just confused, Nabakov more or less threw a fit when the Islanders plucked him off waivers and refused to play for the organization. He later reported and has played with the Islanders for the past three seasons.
Soon to be 39 years old, Evgeni would be the definition of a veteran tender for the Leafs. Not likely expected to play more than 20-30 games max, Nabokov could be a decent option if Toronto is looking to bring in some veteran presence on the bench, as that is where he will spend most of his time.
While nearing 40 is considered quite old, certain goaltenders have played well into their 40’s. That said, Nabokov is no Brodeur, so it’s tough to gauge how much juice he has in the tank. Last year he posted a 2.74GAA and .905SV% with the 26th place Islanders. Not likely my first choice for a backup position, he would be one of few goalies who would step in and accept his backup position but also have much experience as a starter.
Last on the list, at least for me, is Ilya Bryzgalov who is somewhat in the middle of the aforementioned goalie options. Bryzgalov is 33 years old(soon to be 34), has 457 NHL games under his belt both as a starter and a backup.
The issue with Ilya is that it will be tough to say what you will be receiving in signing the Russian goalie. Will you get a strong second option between the pipes who can be relied upon, or another reason for the media to poke fun at the Leafs?
While the former would outweigh the latter, I have a feeling that Brendan Shannahan and the Toronto organization may steer clear of this particular goalie, despite his numbers (2.56GAA, .909SV% averaged out between EDM and MIN), and his experience.
What about you? Who do you feel the Leafs should look into signing to backstop Bernier?
Thanks for reading!