With injuries forcing them to start a third-stringer, the Leafs might bring in a higher-profile replacement. What are the most...
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1. Joonas Korpisalo, Columbus Blue Jackets
Age: 28
Stats: 1 GP, 5.01 GAA, .889 SV%, .900 SV% HDscA
Contract: Pending UFA, $1.3 million AAV|
Acquisition Cost: Medium
Korpisalo worked his way back from offseason surgery to make his season debut in his native Finland on Saturday as part of the NHL’s Global Series. The Blue Jackets are one of a few teams with a goalie surplus; Columbus is only of one two teams (Ottawa) carrying three NHL goalies on their roster right now. We know prized prospect Daniil Tarasov isn’t going anywhere. Tarasov signed a three-year, one-way deal this past offseason. He could be sent to AHL Cleveland because he remains waiver exempt this season. Sources say Korpisalo was offered up to teams last summer for a mid-to-late round pick. He is again a pending UFA. All of that has me wondering … given the tough start to Elvis Merzlikins’ season, and what appears to be an emotional rollercoaster for him game-to-game in body language, is it possible the Blue Jackets would also consider moving Merzlikins? It’s possible, but perhaps that term and contract would scare off a team like Toronto right now, where Korpisalo is a better fit for a host of reasons.
2. James Reimer, San Jose Sharks
Age: 34
Stats: 9 GP, 2.88 GAA, .910 SV%, .780 SV% on HDscA
Contract: Pending UFA, $2.25 million AAV|
Acquisition Cost: Medium
Surprise, surprise. Reimer is off to another excellent start this season with a .910 save percentage and solid goals saved above expected numbers, despite playing with an inferior team in front of him. That’s all Reimer does is play solid. He’s one of the most consistent goalies in an extremely volatile position. Reimer has never had a full season save percentage below .900 and his career average is .913, well above league average over that span, which generally hovers somewhere around .904 to .907. He’s just solid. We know that the Sharks will soon be in sell-down mode, with GM Mike Grier open to making changes. Reimer is a pending free agent, so unless they’re planning on re-signing him, he is eminently available. There’s just that one sticking point with Reimer: his past history in Toronto. He was the guy in net for the Game 7 collapse against Boston in 2013. That should be ancient history, but it’s probably enough to keep Leafs fans (and the front office) awake at night, which might make him a tougher sell.
3. Jonathan Quick, Los Angeles Kings
Age: 36
Stats: 10 GP, 3.34 GAA, .890 SV%, .900 SV% on HDscA
Contract: Pending UFA, $5.8 million AAV
Acquisition Cost: Medium
This two-time Stanley Cup winner and lifelong Los Angeles King is closing in on 750 games with the franchise. He was excellent last season with a .910 save percentage in a big bounce back year. Quick has probably been a little better this season than his overall numbers would indicate, posting a career-high save percentage (small sample size) against high-danger scoring chances. Would the Kings move him? The complicating factor is Cal Petersen has really struggled to find his game these last two seasons – and he’s in the first year of a $15 million contract. If Petersen and Pheonix Copley, one of the better third goalies out there, could carry the ball – then it’s a possibility. Kyle Dubas and Rob Blake have made deals before. Quick has the pedigree and he wants to win. He is the ultimate competitor. Quick does not have any no-trade protection, but he might be able to get a good lay of the land from his brother-in-law, Maple Leafs pro scout Matt Moulson. What would Quick cost? That’s the interesting question. Would Nick Robertson and a third-round pick get it done? Would that be enough to entice the Kings to move one of their franchise pillars in a year with increased expectations? Maybe not.
4. Dan Vladar, Calgary Flames
Age: 25
Stats: 3 GP, 3.82 GAA, .865 SV%, .846 SV% on HDscA
Contract: This season at $750,000 AAV, followed by 2-year extension at $2.2 million AAV
Acquisition Cost: High
Vladar is on the path to being a No. 1 netminder in the NHL. This is his second full NHL season backing up Jacob Markstrom in Calgary and it’s easy to forget how young Vladar really is. Carter Hart is considered one of the best “young” goaltenders in the league, yet Vladar is less than one calendar year older at 25. The Flames saw quality progression in Vladar’s game and inked him to a two-year extension just a couple weeks back. That has given Calgary the ultimate flexibility. Vladar is well positioned to continue to play more games to take some of the workload off Markstrom’s plate. But he’s also locked in at a very reasonable salary cap number, which makes him a valuable trade commodity if other teams share the belief that he is ready to be a starting goalie at some point during that contract. Vladar would also be the most expensive commodity on this board. That’s because he fits Toronto’s age scheme perfectly. And this season, he is playing on a league minimum contract. The Leafs would be in a great spot moving forward with Samsonov and Vladar linked up as a tandem, if they were able to pull something like that off.
5. Anton Khudobin, Dallas Stars
Age: 36
Stats: (in AHL Texas) 5 GP, 3.04 GAA, .905 SV%
Contract: Pending UFA, $3.33 million AAV
Acquisition Cost: Low
Khudobin is the easy answer for a down and dirty solution that could spell the Leafs for a few weeks, or longer, if need be. He’s been parked in the AHL for most of the last year as a salary cap casualty. When the Stars lost Jake Oettinger to injury last week, they weren’t able to recall Khudobin because they couldn’t afford him. The acquisition cost would be quite literally nothing, the Stars would be thrilled to have his $2.2 million in dead cap money off their books. The Leafs could send back a few minor league contracts back to Dallas to free up some much-needed contract space. The problem with Khudobin would be – what will happen if both Samsonov and Murray are healthy again? If Jake Muzzin is also healthy again (no guarantee), then the Leafs will have the same problem as Dallas, and they won’t have the cap space to be able to afford Khudobin’s dead cap penalty if he’s down with the Marlies. Is there a win-win, saw-off point that exists for the Stars where they retain some portion of Khudobin’s salary? That would lessen their dead cap space problem (not totally resolve it) and lessen the blow for the Leafs if they have to send him down.
Honorable Mention: Alex Nedeljkovic, Detroit Red Wings
