Win-win here for sure. GMJR says he can play 30-40 games. Either he bounces back and we have a great 1-2 punch, or he stinks it up and it forces Jarry up. They are not going to play him that many games if he is terrible.
Absolutely.
I am happy JR mentioned 30-40 games. Murray has a history of injury, we do NOT want him to play 60-plus games just yet in his career, especially not if he is going to be needed for 20-plus more in the postseason. So, I absolutely want the backup to play at least 30 this season.
I see it going one of two ways:
- Jarry beats Niemi out in training camp and plays 30-35 games as a rookie, Niemi spends the season trying to find his game in the 'A'.
- Niemi plays half of the expected 30-40 backup games, then gives way to Jarry after the latter gets a little more AHL experience.
I do not see a scenario where Niemi plays the 30-40 games, I just don't think he is good enough anymore (if he even ever was). He has always needed to be sheltered by a great defensive squad to be good. His puck-handling is a disaster and his mental game is not good, either.
At WORST, we acquire a backup at the deadline like we did in '09 (Mathieu Garon).