The NHL’s free agency period gets back to its usual date of July 1st this year and there are, as always, a multitude of names for teams to target. In this series, we’ll take a look at some of those names and what they could offer to teams in terms of both impact and salary. First up: the goalies.
Teams are often loathe to let their goaltenders walk as unrestricted free agents, and rarely do we see many big names on the market. However, this year is a little bit different with both the number of quality goaltenders who are free agents, as well as those that may be available by trade. Before all is said and done, we may just get a small game of musical goaltenders floating around the NHL. Here’s the top five UFA goaltenders.
NHL Free Agent Frenzy: The Goalies
1) Ryan Miller, St. Louis Blues
2013-14 Salary: $6.25 million
2013-14 Stats: 25-30-4, 2.64 GAA, .918 Save %, 1 SO
For those with even a passing fancy of the Buffalo Sabres, it was clear that 2013-14 was a tough season for their franchise goaltender Miller. Not only did the 2010 Olympic silver medalist, Vezina trophy winner and first team all-star struggle with a grossly mediocre team in front of him, he found himself traded from the only team he had ever known to the St. Louis Blues when it became clear that the Sabres were entering full rebuild mode. Expected to help bring the emerging Blues some modicum of playoff success, Miller was only average (some would saw awful) against Chicago in the first round, and St. Louis soon found themselves out of playoff contention. However, despite a somewhat uneven season, there is no doubt that Miller’s pedigree makes him the top goaltender available through free agency. Even at 33 years old, many believe that there is still some good years left in Miller, and he may yet be a crucial piece to a team looking for a top-flight starting goaltender.
2) Jonas Hiller, Anaheim Ducks
2013-14 Salary: $4.5 million
2013-14 Stats: 29-13-7, 2.48 GAA, .911 Save %, 5 SO
It seems likely that whoever misses out on the Miller sweepstakes will target Hiller as a quality secondary option. It’s easy to feel bad for the position Hiller found himself in this year. Despite consistent play all season long, he was relegated to back-up status during the post-season, appearing in only six of the Ducks 13 playoff games. That’s a tough pill to swallow for the incumbent starter, but Anaheim is looking to the future and will likely go with the inexperienced duo of Frederick Andersen and John Gibson in net next year. While the decision to let the 32-year-old former all-star and Olympian walk may be questionable, it’s clear that some other team will reap the reward of that decision. There’s plenty of tread left on Hiller’s tires, so don’t be surprised if Hiller gets numerous offers from other NHL teams for him to be their starting goaltender next year.
3) Devan Dubnyk, Montreal Canadiens
2013-14 Salary: $3.75 million ($3.5 cap hit)
2013-14 Stats: 11-18-3, 3.43 GAA, .894 Save %, 2 SO
Surprised to see Dubnyk so high on this list? Frankly, so am I, but there’s no doubt that Dubnyk will get his fair share of suitors. He may never again be a starting goaltender in the NHL, but his size (6-foot-6) and age (28 years old) will be enticing for some, combined with the fact that, until this season, Dubnyk had seen four straight years of progression behind a simply horrible squad in Edmonton. However this season was abysmal for the former Kamloops junior, and that can’t be overlooked. He was traded to Nashville in January while the Predators were struggling without the injured Pekka Rinne. His impact with the Preds was negligible (he played only two games) and he was again traded, this time to the Montreal Canadiens (for whom he didn’t make a single appearance before the end of the season). If he gets into the right situation, with the right goaltending coach and defense supporting him, Dubnyk could regain his place as a solid NHL netminder, though it will likely be at a considerably lower salary. That’s low risk and a potentially good reward for those NHL teams that could be interested in his services.
4) Ilya Bryzgalov, Minnesota Wild
2013-14 Salary: $2 million ($2.27 cap hit)
2013-14 Stats: 12-9-8, 2.68 GAA, .909 Save %, 4 SO
The eccentric Bryzgalov makes our list of the top UFA goaltenders for the second straight season. After being bought out in the summer of 2013 by the Flyers, Bryzgalov eventually found a suitor in the form of the Edmonton Oilers last November. However, he didn’t perform as well as the Oilers were expecting, and he again found himself on a new team, this time the Wild, who were struggling with injures to Nicklas Backstrom and Josh Harding. His performance with Minnesota could not have been more opposite than how things went in Edmonton, as he picked up only one regulation loss in 12 regular season appearances with the Wild, and helped the team to the second round of the playoffs before bowing out to Chicago. What that means for Bryzgalov heading into free agency is anybody’s guess, as he was as bi-polar as he has been throughout his career last season. He could be both a liability and an asset, and there’s really no way to tell. One thing if for sure, he’s going to be someone’s insurance policy and he will either thrive or falter.
5) Martin Broduer, New Jersey Devils
2013-14 Salary: $5 million ($4.5 cap hit)
2013-14 Stats: 19-14-6, 2.51 GAA, .901 Save %, 3 SO
As much as Miller and Hiller will surely help their new teams, and as much as Dubnyk and Bryzgalov are risky commodities, there is no single goaltender on the UFA market with more intrigue than Broduer. I don’t need to tell you that the 42-year-old who has more wins, shutouts, and minutes played than any other goaltender in NHL history, to go along with four Vezina trophies and three Stanley Cups, will finally be leaving New Jersey after playing his entire 21 season career with the franchise. I likewise don’t need to tell you just how awkward it will be to see Broduer in any jersey other than the red and black. However, Broduer seems intent on playing one more season, and it’s obvious it won’t be in New Jersey with Cory Schneider finally taking the reigns away from him. Complicating matters is Broduer’s declining performance in recent seasons, yet his insistence on getting a high number of starts. Whichever team brings Broduer into the fold is sure to get a fantastic mentor for the other goalies in their organization, though they shouldn’t rely too heavily on him to perform on the ice during what is likely to be the final season of his first-ballot Hall of Fame career.
Honorable Mentions:
Tim Thomas – Dallas Stars (40 years old, $3.75 million), Evgeni Nabokov – New York Islanders (38 years old, $3.25 million), Ray Emery – Philadelphia Flyers (31 years old, $1.65 million) Thomas Greiss – Phoenix Coyotes (28 years old, $750,000).
That’s it for the goalies, check back soon for the next installment of the series: The Defensemen.
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