Flyers’ Eternal Search Continues, Holmgren Looks for Goaltender

NHLHS Philadelphia Flyers Correspondent David Strehle takes a look at Flyers GM Paul Holmgren’s new (and old) mission, to find a franchise goaltender.

For the Philadelphia Flyers it is a seemingly never-ending search, a generational attempt to find that one franchise netminder with which to call their own.

Through the years, we have seen the likes of Tommy Soderstrom, Dominic Roussel, Garth Snow, Jean-Marc Pelletier, Maxime Ouellet, Brian Boucher (in his first stint with the club), Roman Cechmanek, Antero Niittymaki, and Robert Esche anointed as the heir to the throne.

And when the younger guys have failed, then-GM Bob Clarke would delve deeply into the other end of the spectrum.

Sean Burke (twice) and John Vanbiesbrouck come to mind as two of Clarke’s desperate attempts to get the much-needed net presence to man the crease for the Orange-and-Black.

But all that ended up doing was handsomely rewarding an aging, unrestricted free agent for their previous performances with other teams, but not doing much in the way of helping the Flyers’ cause.

It’s a search that has been going on since Ron Hextall’s initial tenure in Philadelphia, which ended when he was dealt to the Quebec Nordiques after the 1991-92 season in the Eric Lindros trade.

It is coming up on the 20th season of that deal, and the Flyers have still not been able to find that one netminder to put between the pipes for the long haul.

Last season was a nightmare for the Orange-and-Black between the pipes, as the Flyers’ netminders were decimated by injuries, as they used seven goaltenders throughout the year.

Ray Emery, signed as a free agent out of the KHL prior to the season, would sustain two serious injuries that required surgery.  The hip injury that struck him in early March may even be career-threatening.

Boucher is signed for the 2010-11 season and Johan Backlund was recently re-signed for two more years.  But with Michael Leighton set to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1st, the position is once again in a state of flux.

Philly GM Paul Holmgren, fresh off acquiring defenseman Dan Hamhuis from Nashville on Saturday, is set to tackle the ongoing goaltending issue.

Including bringing Leighton back, there are many avenues for Holmgren to explore.  Here are some of those options:

Unrestricted Free Agents:

Leighton – Picked up off the waiver wire by Holmgren in early-December, Leighton was a Godsend for a struggling team that could not find its way.  All he did was proceed to go 16-5-2 before succumbing to a high ankle sprain in March.  When he returned during Philly’s improbable postseason run, Leighton went 8-3.

The only problem was that he let in several goals of the “soft” variety in the Finals against the Chicago Blackhawks.

Leighton has stated on the record that he wishes to return, and head coach Peter Laviolette has voiced his support for bringing Leighton back, but Holmgren has sounded a bit less-thrilled about Leighton returning after the loss in the Finals.  Days after the final loss on game six, Holmgren said that he still hadn’t seen the replay of Patrick Kane’s Cup-winning overtime goal.  He hasn’t seen the puck enter the net, and just couldn’t bring himself to see it.

Leighton’s agent Mike Liut has stated that he is seeking a deal worth between $2-3 million, which isn’t breaking the bank.

Leighton fingerprint:  Depending on how much is required to get Hamhuis signed and how much of the $8+ million surplus there is left to work with and given the fact that Leighton has proven to work well with his team, Holmgren may, indeed, be bringing Leighton back into the fold when all is said and done.

Marty Turco:  Turco has long been considered one of the top ten netminders in the NHL.  But the soon to be 35-year-old, nine-year veteran of the Dallas Stars saw a significant dropoff in play in 2009-10.

His six year streak of 30 or more wins came to an abrupt halt, as he struggled to a 22-20-11 record.

Taking a Flyer on Turco: Coupled with the salary that Turco most-likely will be demanding (he made $5.7 million last year) and his dropoff in play, a Turco signing would appear to be in the same avenue of the Vanbiesbrouck signing a decade ago.  I find this option very doubtful.

Evgeni Nabokov:  The San Jose Sharks have had a label of being “playoff underacheivers”, and Nabby has been front-and-center in the blame game.

The 10-year vet has been a workhorse for the Sharks in the regular season, registering 40+ wins in each of the past three seasons.

But it’s the postseason failures that most people will be looking at when considering Nabokov when July 1st rolls around.

Lowdown on Nabby:  Nabokov is in the same boat as Turco.  He will also be turning 35, and drew a salary of $5.375 million last season.  If he is looking for a big payday (i.e. a hefty raise), the chances that he will be wearing Orange-and-Black come training camp are slim-to-none.

Jose Theodore:  Theodore is another in this year’s 30-something, big contract netminders.  Theodore, who turns 34 in September, had one of his best regular seasons in the NHL last season.  His 30-7-7 record led the way for the Presidents’ Trophy-winning Washington Capitals.  But after being given the nod over Semyon Varlamov as the starter in the postseason, the Capitals fell in seven games to the Montreal Canadiens.  The play of Habs’ goaltender Jaroslav Halak was the difference, as he outplayed Theodore.

The theory on Theo:  Theodore has overcome great personal tragedy and succeeded, but with his $4.5 million salary in 2009-10, he will be expecting another huge payday.  Given his age and asking price, it’s almost a sure bet that Holmgren will pass on Theodore.

Chris Mason:  The 34-year-old Mason had his best year in the NHL last season for the St. Louis Blues, reaching the 30-win mark for the first time in his career.  A late-bloomer, Mason has 20+ wins in three of his last four seasons.

The markup on Mason:  While Mason has shown no signs of slowing down, he is still 34.  Add in the fact that he made $3 million last season, and he will probably be looking for a significant raise.  This will probably be the last chance to make the big money for Mason, so it isn’t likely that he would take less for an opportunity to win.

Dan Ellis:  Drafted by the Dallas Stars in 2000, Ellis saw action in just one game (a win in 2003-04 season).

Ellis was signed by the Nashville Predators as a free agent in 2007 and had actually taken the starting job away from Chris Mason, posting a 23-10-3 mark during the 2007-08 campaign.  But in 2008-09 Ellis dropped to just 11-19-4, prompting the call-up from the minors of Pekka Rinne.  The rest, as they say, is history.

The Down low on Dan:  Ellis may be just what the Flyers are looking for…a netminder that just turned 30 and made just $1.75 million last season.  Depending on the salary neighborhood Ellis is hoping to move in to, he may be a good possibility.

Antero Niittymaki:  Originally drafted by Philly in 1998, Niitty was always the good soldier.  A fantastic goaltender and Olympic Silver Medal winner in 2006, he was never really given the opportunity to become the number one guy for the Flyers.  There always seemed to be another guy promoted or brought in and given the job…Boucher, Cechmanek, Esche, Martin Biron.  The only time that Niittymaki was given the bulk of starts for any stretch was during the Flyers franchise-worst 2006-07, in which they finished last overall in the NHL standings.  Niitty was given the reigns as the team played out the string, and his 9-29-9 mark was abysmal.

Notes on Niitty:  When Niittymaki was allowed to walk away as an UFA and Holmgren went to the KHL to lure Emery back from his exile, it continued a pattern of the Flyers looking elsewhere when they may have had their answer right under their noses.  Niitty was signed to a one-year, $600,000 contract by the Tampa Bay Lightning, then wrestled the starting job away from incumbent Mike Smith.  He finished with a more than respectable 21-18-5 record for a non-playoff team.  At $600k, the 30-year-old goalie could be the perfect fit to come back and take the starting job for Philadelphia.

Vesa Toskala:  Not nearly on the same level as either Turco or Nabokov over the course of his career, Toskala nonetheless had four consecutive 20+ win seasons with the San Jose Sharks and Toronto Maple Leafs heading into the 2009-10 campaign.  But the 33-year-old Finnish goaltender fell off dramatically this past season, recording a 9-12-3 mark with Toronto and the Calgary Flames.

The Toskala total:  Despite a 129-82-5 record over eight NHL seasons, Toskala has largely spent most of that time as a backup.  In San Jose, he was second fiddle to Nabokov.  When given the reigns for a less-than great Toronto team, he managed a 62-54-20 record before being shipped to Calgary, where he was again backup, this time to Miikka Kiprusoff.

But if he is looking for a raise on his 2009-10 $4 million salary, he will be looking in cities other than Philadelphia.

The Unrestricted Free Agent Dark Horses (i.e. the rest):  Johan Hedberg (37-years-old, $1.087 million in 2009-10), Peter Budaj (28 in September, $1.25 million), Alex Auld (29, $1 million), Andrew Raycroft (30, $500,000), Patrick Lalime (36 in July, $1 million), Manny Legace (37, $500,000).

Trade Possibilities:

Los Angeles:

There have been a number of trade rumors that Holmgren could opt to take if he chooses not to go the route of unrestricted free agency.  One that is making the rounds is that he is interested in either Jonathan Quick or Jonathan Bernier from the Los Angeles Kings.

With the connection that Philadelphia and L.A. share, with L.A.’s GM Dean Lombardi and Assistant GM Ron Hextall being former employees before heading west, there may be some meat to this one.

Quick is 24-years-old and his 2010-11 salary will be $1.8 million, a nice fit for Homer’s cap room.  The 6′ 1″, 223 pound netminder is coming off a stellar season in which he put up a 39-24-7 mark, leading the Kings to the number six seed in the Western Conference and a playoff spot.

In his first NHL postseason, Quick’s Kings lost in six hard-fought games.

Bernier, who will turn 22 in August, will likely make a push in training camp to unseat Quick as the starter.  L.A. management is very high on the first round pick from 2006, and with good reason.

With 28-year-old Erik Ersberg as backup, the Kings may be ready to move either Quick or Bernier for the right return.

With the Kings having room under the salary cap, forward Jeff Carter may be a return being sought after by Lombardi and company.  They were rumored to be in the bidding for Ilya Kovalchuk prior to the Atlanta Thrashers moving him to New Jersey, and their desire to bolster their forward slots has been made known.  They could go the unrestricted free agent route and sign Kovalchuk, but they will need to dole out approximately $10 million annually.

Minnesota:

Josh Harding – The 26-year-old restricted free agent made $1.1 million last season, and may be moved to a team where he has a chance to be the starter.  With Niklas Backstrom signed for three more seasons, playing time will be scarce for Harding if he remains with the Wild.

Minnesota can always use help at the forward position, and even though forwards have been sacrificed to fit the team’s salary into the cap limit, the Flyers still have a wealth up front with which to deal.

There had been rumors that Philadelphia was ready to offer up Carter to the Montreal Canadiens for either Halak or Carey Price.  But with the shocking trade that sent Halak to the St. Louis Blues, any deal with Les Habitants appears to have been quashed, as Price will undoubtedly take the reigns in the Montreal crease.

Conclusion:

Holmgren will have a busy week ahead of him leading up to Friday night’s commencement of the Entry Draft.  He needs to get Hamhuis signed, and is rumored to be talking to several clubs about acquiring a goaltender via trade.

If nothing comes to fruition, he can fit an unrestricted free agent into his salary structure.

As mentioned above, Holmgren would do well to avoid any long-term deals with the aging, high-money netminders.  This would wipe Turco, Nabokov, Mason, Theodore, and Toskala off of Homer’s list.

The UFA options the Flyers may want to explore if a trade is not consummated are Ellis and Niitymaki.  Outside of Leighton, these two would seem to have the best fit, both age-wise and monetarily.

And if this is the route Holmgren chooses, whichever goalie he signs will be a hold-over until hopefully Sergei Bobrovsky (see previous story on him here) or Joacim Eriksson will develop and be ready as the long-term netminder this franchise has lacked for so long.

If possible, either Bernier or Quick from the Kings would be the best-possible move for Holmgren.  Both goaltenders are young, and could alleviate the constant state of flux in the Flyers’ crease.

Either one would be considered a franchise goaltender.

Whichever goaltender ends up between the pipes for the Flyers when the season opens will definitely benefit from the work being done by Holmgren to shore up the Philadelphia blue line.

By week’s end, we may just know the identity of that masked man.  And along with that move comes the opportunity for Holmgren to put his permanent stamp on the franchise.

David Strehle
NHLHS Flyers Correspondent / NHL Writer
dstrehle@nhlhotstove.com
Twitter: @PhilaDAVEia