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Wild Goaltending thread: Dubnyk trade latest


hf101

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With Harding on the IR and said to have no change in his recovery, Keumper is doing his best to tell the organization they don't need another goalie.  How do you not go with him as the #1?   Since Jan. 7, he's tied for 1st in the NHL w 10 wins, tied- for 4th with a .935 SV%, and tied for 4th with a 1.94 GAA.

 

The Wild apparently are looking for insurance in net and could be targeting Brodeur or Ward for veteran playoff experience. According to Russo of the StarTribune, the Oilers offered up the Bryz (of course, lol) and Tim Thomas of Florida is likely another option.  I think it is clear that Backstrom can't be counted upon with his abdominal issues, but he also has a modified NTC and a NMC.  Unless the Wild can trade or IR Backstrom he makes getting another starter like Ward or Brodeur difficult imo.

 

Realistically the Wild don't have all the pieces to win a Stanley Cup just yet, but they still should give the team the best chance for success solidifying a playoff spot.  I'd like to see them pick up a #3 goalie behind Backstrom who has some NHL experience but can be assigned to the Aeros.  I wouldn't mind Khudobin though as there also isn't a lot of available cap space.

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Update: 

I've come across a few tidbits in my internet browsing.  I did see on another forum where apparently Brodeur has waived his NTC.  Interesting enough he has  two children at Shattuck-St. Mary’s.  The Devils though are only 3 points out of a playoff spot.  And also according to Russo  Fletcher and Tim Murray worked together for years in Florida and Anaheim adding to the possibility that Halak could be moved to the Wild.  

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  Brodeur or Ward (if he would waive his NTC) would be great fits. The tragedy that rides along with Harding is one of the saddest stories in the game, Backstrom was signed to a long term deal at the end of the season which may rival the deals given to Weiss and Clarkson.

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  If I'm Minny, I have some damn patience and see how far Kempher takes them. So, they make a move for Halak, overpay while doing so....and even worse, block the way for their young stud goalie. I don't get his line of thinking at all.

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  Brodeur or Ward (if he would waive his NTC) would be great fits. The tragedy that rides along with Harding is one of the saddest stories in the game, Backstrom was signed to a long term deal at the end of the season which may rival the deals given to Weiss and Clarkson.

 

Backstrom has two more years at $3.4M. Modified MTC/NMC. I guess the Wild were looking for some long term insurance, but he's 35+ and a bit injury prone as well. I don't think that totally hamstrings the team, though.

 

Last I saw, Brodeur said he would waive his NMC if the Devils were out of the playoff picture. Don't know if that's changed significantly. His purpose was to help the Devils out with more picks.

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@radoran

Sorry Rad I thought he had 3 more years, but still they would have been better off letting Backstrom sign elsewhere in the past offseason and sign a younger option or trade for one of the young goalies (Schneider or Bernier) and addressing the need that way.

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@radoran

Sorry Rad I thought he had 3 more years, but still they would have been better off letting Backstrom sign elsewhere in the past offseason and sign a younger option or trade for one of the young goalies (Schneider or Bernier) and addressing the need that way.

 

I don't disagree. I think they were looking for Backstrom to be a steady, veteran presence at a reasonable hit that would transition to backup gracefully.

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  • 1 month later...

Did anyone hear that the Wild aren't going to re-sign Bryz when the season is over. I wasn't a fan of him at first, but after watching him the last few games, he's an able tender. 

I hadn't heard that yet, but it wouldn't surprise me.

 

Sure, Bryz is doing a good job for the time being, but I think everyone understands that Bryz is Bryz and at anytime, he could revert to the 'Wandering Space Man' and leave the team high n dry in net.

 

Granted, I still think Darcy Kuemper is the answer...though he did seem to tire a bit towards the end of the season, and possibly dealing with injuries while he was still playing was part of it....but if Minnesota wants a veteran goaltender for next year, they STILL  have a Nick Backstrom to lean on.

And even if Minnesota would like to move on past Backstrom, there are other FA goalies that would probably be more solid than Bryz would be for the duration of any given season, while Kuemper continues to develop.

 

Brian Elliot, Al Montoya come to mind as pretty good stop-gap type goalies while Kuemper comes around once again.

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@Eric Burton

 

Welcome.  

 

I did read today of a report which stated that Bryzgalov isn't committing now if he will return to the NHL next year.  Which I believe means he is waiting to see what offers come in.  

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@Eric Burton

 

I'm not sure why the Wild would try to sign him at this point?  Both Backstrom and Harding could be back next season....unless Harding is LTIR'd for the entire year next Oct.  

 

The Wild should make an offer to Kuemper as an RFA I would think.

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@Eric Burton

 

I'm not sure why the Wild would try to sign him at this point?  Both Backstrom and Harding could be back next season....unless Harding is LTIR'd for the entire year next Oct.  

 

The Wild should make an offer to Kuemper as an RFA I would think.

 

I guess my thinking is that Backstrom hasn't been the same since he got hurt and I was hoping the Wild part ways with him. Kuemper is the goalie of the future... Harding hasn't played a full season since he got MS, I wonder if he will ever be the same. When he's played, he's been lights out. 

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I guess my thinking is that Backstrom hasn't been the same since he got hurt and I was hoping the Wild part ways with him. Kuemper is the goalie of the future... Harding hasn't played a full season since he got MS, I wonder if he will ever be the same. When he's played, he's been lights out. 

 

Bryz with another shutout.  Sure looks like he wants to take the team into the playoffs as the starter.

I'll assume that Backstrom will have recovered from his abdominal surgery by next fall and will back up Kuemper.  

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I think Bryz is a perfect example of a system goalie. I would venture to say that most goalies in the NHL are 'systems goalies'. We've seen enough of Lundqvist on bad Rangers teams to know that he is an elite goaltender on his own merit. 

 

You can clearly see that in a strong defensive system like Phoenix and Minnesota, Bryzgalov does very well. But on weak defensive teams like the Oilers and Flyers (though this year might have been different), Bryzgalov gets exposed.

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  • 2 months later...

Harding says he is going to be back for the start of the year. I hope so, there is no player in the game today who I admire more.

 Backstrom is a 50/50 proposition.

 Kuemper is a gamble. A decent prospect but not a phenom.

 

  Essentialy the Wild are right there ready to compete with the big boys in the West, the kids have experience under their belt, goaltending is the biggest area of concern.

  If I had a choice, money wise of signing Vanek or Miller, man that's a rough one. Miller is an upgrade over what you have, but can you afford to take on more salary in net? Can Backstrom be bought out? Tough call this summer.

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If he does indeed retire as stated yes.  Then like my Sabres they will need that franchise goalie.  If Miller stays in St Louis Elliot will be available.  I do not know if we will keep Enroth and Hackett both?  One of them probably deserves a  shot to start.  We had Miller and Hasek before that.  So now we must find that next goalie and Buffalo has always had a knack of getting a great goalie.  I do not know much about the pool in the juniors?  I hope Murray does

Not a lot going in the Buffalo system as far as goalies go. Matt Hackett is the best in the farm, but is projected to be a backup goalie at best.

 

Defense seems to be where your best prospects are. Ristolainen looks like he is going to be a solid offensive defenseman

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Give you Niemi for a 2nd or 3rd round pick

buttkick.gif

 

Lol...not sure if you are being facetious or not, JoeT, but if I am the Wild, I might actually DO  that one.

Hell....2nd or 3rd round pick in this draft? That's all you would ask for?

 

Tell you what, I'd give San Jose the 2nd round pick in 2014 AND throw in Keith Ballard (who still has a year left on his contract) for Antti Niemi, who also has a year left.

 

Wild are stocked pretty well not only on the team now but in the minors that they can afford to give up a 2nd rounder for a still only 30 yr old netminder who has performed pretty well throughout his career and would probably benefit greatly from Minnesota's usually tight and structured defensive system and speedy, puck possession forwards who tend to keep the action on the opposite side of him for long stretches.

 

And I don't mind giving up Ballard because the Wild have two UFA defensemen (Clayton Stoner and Nate Prosser) who I wouldn't mind re-signing, but both can't because Ballard is still on the roster.

 

Problem with dealing for Niemi, IMO, wouldn't be giving up the 2nd rounder, but what to do about Backstrom and Harding.

I do believe Minnesota does view Darcy Kuemper (just turned 24 last month) as their number one down the road, but I also think the Wild are a bit hesitant to just give either Backstrom or Harding the straight up boot because of how good a soldier both have been for the organization.

The Minnesota Wild may be loyal to both those guys to a fault however....

 

Backstrom has well known chronic injury issues and as he is over 35 that will NOT get better...and obviously, Harding, with the MS situation will also not get better, as MS is a well known debilitating disease that can be contained to an extent, but not really stopped.

With Harding, unfortunately, it isn't a matter of "when will he have a full clean bill of health", but rather, "how much longer as a player does he really have".

Damned shame for a guy who seemed poised to take over the number 1 job in Minnesota and now, at just 30 years old, has to start looking at life outside of hockey sooner than later.

Harding has one year left on his contract at 2.1 Million (1.9 cap hit).

Backstrom, meanwhile, has two years left, at a cap hit of 3.4 mil.

 

So Minnesota has a very tough decision to make as even without Niemi the Wild have three goalies right now.

But yea, I'd do Antti Niemi for a 2014 2nd rounder and Keith Ballard, once Niemi got here, maybe give him a 2 or 3 yr extension to the year he already has, and during that time, they have more time to evaluate Darcy Kuemper and see if he really will be their number one or not.....but then, that means clearing out both Backs and Josh, then putting Kuemper as the backup while Niemi plays the bulk of the games....or maybe perhaps doing a 60%-40% splits between them for ice time during the season.

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  • 3 weeks later...

I do believe Minnesota does view Darcy Kuemper (just turned 24 last month) as their number one down the road, but I also think the Wild are a bit hesitant to just give either Backstrom or Harding the straight up boot because of how good a soldier both have been for the organization.

I agree we are viewing him quite highly already. I don't like to lean on him too much too soon though, because I'm not sure he's ready to be starter for us. I do however believe that someday he could be, The potential is there. I just don't see it for another few years. That being said I think we are in a very awkward situation with our goalies. But we seem to always find a way to make things work with shuffling people around. I do even remember seeing John Curry from Iowa Wild come and play a pretty important end of regular season game against the blues and he looked pretty solid in net. I could almost see him being a possible backup selection.

 

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  • 5 months later...

Giving this thread a **bump** because, even though its an older thread, the question of Do The Wild Need A Goalie? is coming to light once again.

 

Since this thread was originally started, the Wild have seen Darcy Kuemper become their number one, Backstrom is the number two, Josh Harding has been relegated to the minors for the duration of his contract (final year this season), and John Curry (AHL Iowa) called up on occasion for an spot start or backup role.

 

While Kuemper has been made the number one, there have been times when he certainly has not played like one. In fact, he has been pulled in a handful of games and replaced by Nik Backstrom due to some goals that were deemed stoppable that he simply did not.

 

Does this mean Kuemper is a bust as a number one? Not necessarily....but it DOES mean that the Wild, in addition to their chronic PP and finishing problems, now are dealing with inconsistent goaltending.

And this simply is NOT a good thing for a team that was supposed to take major steps forward towards a division title and a deep playoff run THIS season.

 

So what can Minnesota do?

Tough question to answer as they have committed to both Kuemper and Backstrom. 

However, in listening to some NHL Network today, I come to find out that FORMER Minnesota farmhand, Matt Hackett is being put on waivers by the Buffalo Sabres.

 

Hackett is coming off injury, however, I wonder if the Wild wouldn't be prudent to put in a claim for Hackett, then let him rehab from injury in Iowa, work off his gameplay rust as well, then see down the road what comes of the goalie situation with Kuemper and/or Backstrom.

 

Sure, claiming a guy like Hackett doesn't help the Wild now, and there is no guarantee that he will even be an NHL type goalie anyways, but it is a no risk, potential upside type move for later on, IMO.

Hackett did play for Minnesota before he was traded and I thought he did pretty well for the limited time he played for them. If anything, he would probably still be an upgrade over John Curry who seems more a career AHL goaltender.

 

To get a goalie that could help the Wild NOW, I am afraid Minnesota will have to make a big trade of some sort, which of course, means monkeying with its forward or defensive lineups.

 

Thoughts on other ways Minnesota can try to address their goaltending situations as it now stands?

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@TropicalFruitGirl26

 

Although the Wild are in the running to claim Hackett I don't think he will last that long.  That said Hackett hasn't been very good... at all and I wouldn't be surprised if teams pass on him.

 

I'm also wondering if the Wild knew he wasn't going to amount to much when they traded him away a couple of seasons ago.  

 

Now back to the topic.  The Wild do have Jonas Gustafsson with the Iowa Wild.  Although he hasn't had the best season I'm not sure if Hackett would replace him.  The Wild also have some goalies in their system.   The biggest issue with the Wild seems to be Kuemper's sophomore slump.  Maybe the best way to fix this is having Backstrom play 40-50% of the games. 

 

The best way for the Wild to improve right now would be to get their forwards scoring goals putting the pressure on the opposition rather than in their own backend.

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  • 2 weeks later...

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