Confirmed with Link: Canucks sign G Braden Holtby to 2-Year Deal ($4.3M AAV)

[Bleach Clean]

He might not even be here for the full 2 years so meh.

I'm beyond excited for Demko to get this opportunity as the #1.

As am I. It was the right call to go with Demko. Glad they chose to do it.

But then to follow it up with another poor signing?

He’s going to be here for 2 years. If you’re Seattle, you’re taking on a far better goalie via expansion. No reason to overpay Holtby just because you can expose him.

 

[BB06]

I think Hotlby rebounds in all honesty. The Ian Clark factor is underrated.

 

[MS]

I don’t think many people understand this

It's basically like giving $4.3 million to Kyle Turris (same age) and then pointing to how good Turris was in 2017 to justify the signing.

 

[Canucks1096]

The Linden for Bertuzzi McCabe trade tree lasted 22 years and just ended.

 

[THE Green Man]

I don't get all the hate here. It's a bit much for platooning but he'll be exposed to Seattle and depending on if they take him or Rousell/Beagle we will gain that cap space back for Petey and Hughes extensions.

 

[mdobbs]

I don't think there's a single GM in the NHL that wouldn't have signed a capable backup to Demko. It's definitely an overpayment but this is 1000x better than resigning an over 30 Markstrom to a 6-7 year deal. Everyone should be happy - the Canucks true window probably doesn't open for another 2 years anyways.

 

[FroshaugFan2]

How is the term good?

You guys know who has to be re-signed next year, correct? And who is still on the books?

 

[Carlzner]

Stats and on-ice play aside he was always a huge part of the DC community. Don't think there's a single Caps fan that doesn't hope he shines in Vancouver for you guys.

 

[4Twenty]

Demko needs a deal next year. If he steals the net he’s getting much more than this putting a massive cap hit on goaltending which is the most inefficient way to structure a team even if it’s only one year because of the extensions required for Petey and Hughes on top of Demko plus I’d imagine the goal of being a top 5-6 contender next season.

It’s a high AAV for the flat cap.

 

[vanarchy]

As am I. It was the right call to go with Demko. Glad they chose to do it.

But then to follow it up with another poor signing?

He’s going to be here for 2 years. If you’re Seattle, you’re taking on a far better goalie via expansion. No reason to overpay Holtby just because you can expose him.

I honestly think I had such low expectations for today that this isn't even phasing me. I think some of the reactions on here are a little over the top but to each their own.

 

[Pip]

31 year old Holtby on a 2 year deal or 30 year old Markstrom on a 5 year deal, probably with an NMC?

This is fine.

One of the best goalies in the league versus one of the worst.

I am not against moving on from Markstrom as his contract will be ugly by the end of it, but this just isn’t the answer.

 

[Bleach Clean]

This is a great signing

short term.... let him help ease Demko in.
He could easily rebound. Also, hopefully seattle takes him.

this is very good. Management knows what bad contracts look like now.....this signing is proof that they're learning...
Marky will get 6 or 7 years, which would not be good for us.

Management knows what a bad contract looks like now, but just signed a bad contract...ok?

 

[kanuck87]

How is term good?

You guys know who has to be re-signed next year, correct? And who is still on the books?

but but Seattle’s gonna take holtby in expansion draft, ya know?

 

[MS]

How is term good?

You guys know who has to be re-signed next year, correct? And who is still on the books?

I can't believe people aren't understanding this.

The top priority for any goaltender acquisition right now should have been that it was on a 1-year deal. Period. End of story. You sign the best guy willing to take a 1-year deal.

 

[Pip]

If the Ian Clark factor is so huge he can turn a bad goalie back into a good one, why the heck are we spending any money on a goalie. Pick up someone for league minimum if he’s such a miracle worker

 

[VancouverJagger]

Queue the usual suspects losing their shit at pretty much anything Benning does............

2 year deal is perfect. $$ figure higher than I would have liked and some risk with his recent play but judging from comments on the main board sounds like he can bounce back with the help of a good GC. Thought process at least is right - short term veteran to help share the load. Overall prefer this then the risk of a 5-6 year Markstrom deal.

Main boards mostly saying this is a good deal/signing...........over here and the usual suspects up in arms...........

 

[Pastor Of Muppetz]

I honestly think I had such low expectations for today that this isn't even phasing me. I think some of the reactions on here are a little over the top but to each their own.

Ya think..?...lol

 

[Bleach Clean]

I honestly think I had such low expectations for today that this isn't even phasing me. I think some of the reactions on here are a little over the top but to each their own.

I just would like 1 year where Benning signs reasonable deals in FA. Just one. That was my expectation, but alas, not to be.

He always has to overpay. It’s like in his DNA.

 

[F A N]

A few thoughts:

Bye bye Markstrom. Was hoping he would re-sign him for a low AAV with no expansion draft protection so that it didn't matter if you became the team's 1B.

I was actually expecting Markstrom's replacement to be Khudobin since he apparently expressed interest in Vancouver. He's an older goalie of course.

The price is a bit high for a 1B but not outside the realm of reasonableness. I think the market has changed and gone are the days where it's desirable to pay your star goalie $8M+ and pair him with a cheap backup. Like I said, in the past, it seems that Cup winners can spend up to ~$8M-9M on goaltending (it will be interesting to see if TB ever wins another Cup with Vasilevskiy making $9.5M AAV). I liked Talbot and he got a 3 year deal and a desire to be the main starter. I think you'll see many 1B options come in at $3.6-$4M. Montreal was widely praised for their Jake Allen deal.

I don't think 2 years is an issue at all. Personally, I think 2 years is an ideal term and we weren't going to get that with Markstrom. We need to have a goalie to expose in the expansion draft and this means we don't have to sign a Louis Domingue for 2 years. This is also in line with how we have developed our goalies in the past. Schneider spent 3 full seasons in the AHL. That was the plan for Demko as well. Nothing wrong with having Dipietro follow the same development path. This obviously paves the way for Demko to be the team's goalie of the future and sign a long term extension with the Canucks.

The issue is Holtby. He hasn't been good and his numbers are atrocious.. Can he be relied upon to be a good 1B option and start 30-40 games?

I'm thinking Ian Clark was consulted. In the past, Benning just asked Clark for a list of goaltenders to target. I highly doubt that Benning would sign Holtby if Clark didn't think it was a good idea. So like some others here, I am a bit hopeful.

 

[Canucks LB]

I don’t know if I hate this, if I like this, or if I’m just satisfied with this, honestly I just want to see how the season plays out.

My original reaction was pretty pissed off, Probably just because I still can’t believe it happened

Losing markstrom sucks

 

[Nuckles]

lmao @ people saying he's just Seattle bait. Seattle has much better/cheaper options for goalies in the expansion draft, there's a likely possibility Vancouver is stuck with his $4.3M cap hit for another year when Pettersson, Hughes, and Demko need to be re-signed.

Also, need I remind people of a similar situation in the recent past involving a former star goalie who was past his prime and very overpaid who took starts away from a young, upcoming Canucks goalie... (while also pushing out a better, younger, cheaper option)

 

[Josepho]

I think he'll do better under our goalie coaching, but this definitely wouldn't've been my first target.

At least we didn't go too long on the term.

 

[Flik]

I love Holtby and think he can provide Demko with a little bit of a buffer.

Price and term is a tad high but whatever, our cap is completely f***ed and we're gonna be taking a step back for the next couple of seasons anyways. Pretty meh overall, I just hope we can allow Demko to flourish.

 

[bobbyb2009]

What a ****ing awful signing. If they were going to have a platoon goalie for 2 years they should've just taken on Fleury at 50% and get a ****ing 1st round pick. WTF.

Was this really an option? (Sorry, I haven't read the whole thread, but could we really have had a 1st and fleury at 50%?).

 

[Peen]

Ya think..?...lol

When is our realistic window to be a contending team beginning now POM?

I remember you laughed off the notion of 2022-2023.