PIPE DREAMS


At first blush, it does not appear that the free agent market contains many potential goaltending saviours this summer, if any at all. Here is the list of the more prominent potential UFAs among goaltenders, including their 2011-12 cap hits:
Cristobal Huet, Chicago ($5,625,000); Martin Brodeur, New Jersey Devils ($5,200,000); Dwayne Roloson, Tampa Bay ($3,000,000); Antero Niittymaki, San Jose ($2,000,000); Chris Mason, Winnipeg ($1,850,000); Michael Leighton, Philadelphia ($1,550,000); Dan Ellis, Anaheim ($1,500,000); Tomas Vokoun, Washington ($1,500,000); Johan Hedberg, New Jersey ($1,250,000); Scott Clemmensen, Florida ($1,200,000): Alex Auld, Ottawa ($1,000,000); Martin Biron, Rangers ($875,000); Johan Backlund, Philadelphia ($800,000); Ty Conklin, Detroit ($750,000); Josh Harding, Minnesota ($750,000); Andrew Raycroft, Dallas Stars ($650,000); Yann Danis, Edmonton ($650,000); Curtis McElhinney, Phoenix ($625,000); Al Montoya, Islanders ($601,000); Ray Emery, Chicago ($600,000); Curtis Sanford, Columbus ($600,000); Brent Johnson, Pittsburgh ($600,000); Evgeni Nabokov, Islanders ($570,000). Brodeur, Roloson and Hedberg are in the twilight of their careers. Vokoun puts up respectable numbers but always seems to miss the playoffs. Do you take a chance on Nabokov? Emery? Montoya? A trade might be a better route to go for Toronto, but how steep will the price be for a kid like the Kings Jonathan Bernier? Keep in mind that teams like Tampa Bay and Columbus also are in the hunt for help between the pipes. As for the Canucks Cory Schneider, just can’t see Vancouver making a deal with Toronto given the animosity between the two organizations.http://www.torontosun.com/2012/03/08/gustavssons-fatal-flaw