Speculation: 2014-2015 Back-up goalie

[Pirate King Luffy]

I do not want James Reimer.

 

[Turning Mangiapanese]

Maybe we go for Darcy Kuemper out of Minnesota??

I would imagine Kuemper is Mr. Future for the Wild right now. He's behind Bryz, Bäckström and Harding who all have various amounts of question marks on them.

But since we have cap space, how about trading something for Bäckström + a sweetener pick? He's not what he used to be but should make for an OK veteran backup IMO. Ideal mentor for both his fellow countrymen as well.

The UFA crop looks pretty good though, I'd be happy with any of these guys: Elliott, Gustavsson, Greiss, Montoya. Hell, maybe even McBackup?

 

[Hand of Gaudreau]

The reason I'm not sold on Reimer is that I think he wants to be a starter wherever he ends up. We obviously want someone to push Ramo, but I think that guy to push him is already here in Ortio. I'd be fine with Gus because he is a quality backup, nothing more. He would know his place here and would not create a problem in the dressing room. Burke also has a history with him so I think he would be happy to sign here.

I don't want the Flames to try and get another starter because I think Ramo played so well down the stretch and he deserves a real opportunity to be the guy.

Ramo should get a shot, but not because of late season heroics, but because he's earned it next season. If we signed Reimer, he would come in and want to start, just like Ramo would come in and want to start. They would battle, and someone would prove themselves the starter. The other goalie would still get in their share of games, likely around 30, but a competitive battle is good for goalies. Look at Bernier this season, neither goalie was the starter, but both played very well, and eventually Bernier proved himself to be the better starter option. Say what you want, but before Reimer lost all confidence in himself near the end of the year, he was a stud in Toronto, I remember specifically his shutout against Pittsburgh that was essentially a 60 minute highlight reel.

He is a good goalie, and I think he would either become a starter here, or push Ramo to be an even better starter than he already is(which don't get me wrong, is a better starter than Reimer).

 

[Pirate King Luffy]

I wouldn't mind Gustavsson.

 

[fallsviewafro*]

We haven't had an ex-Leaf for awhile. Pitch an offer sheet for Reimer or sign Gus; I'd be okay with either.

 

[Lunatik]

We haven't had an ex-Leaf for awhile. Pitch an offer sheet for Reimer or sign Gus; I'd be okay with either.

Colborne?

 

[Sparky93]

I wonder what the price tag would be on Lindback? He's still young and could be a bit of a reclamation project.

 

[AfricanHerbsman]

We haven't had an ex-Leaf for awhile. Pitch an offer sheet for Reimer or sign Gus; I'd be okay with either.

Gus sure. Keep Reimer as far away from this team as possible. Not only does he suck. He wants to be a starter with a nice term contract.
Reimer can go to the oilers or van so we can light him up and rejoice that he's not on our squad. I can't think of a goalie I want less. James Reimer is awful. Plus Karri totally earned the starting job next year and he's better then Reimer

 

[fallsviewafro*]

Colborne?

Oops, forgot about him. It was awhile before that anyways.

 

[MonahanTheMan]

I wonder what the price tag would be on Lindback? He's still young and could be a bit of a reclamation project.

I think Lindback might be the worst player in the NHL.

 

[Hand of Gaudreau]

Gus sure. Keep Reimer as far away from this team as possible. Not only does he suck. He wants to be a starter with a nice term contract.
Reimer can go to the oilers or van so we can light him up and rejoice that he's not on our squad. I can't think of a goalie I want less. James Reimer is awful. Plus Karri totally earned the starting job next year and he's better then Reimer

How can you say he sucks? Even playing on the worst defensive team in the NHL he had not just good, but great stats until he stopped getting regular starts(Beginning of January). When the coaching staff stopped playing him and started tearing down his confidence is when his play began to crumble. I'm not saying he is great, but he is SO far from awful. And OF COURSE he wants to be a starter, I would not want a early 20's goaltender on my team if he didnt aspire to be a starter in the NHL. He was misused and mistreated his entire tenure in Toronto, and I wouldn't mind seeing him in an organization that respected his ability to play, because it is most definitely there, even if it is to a lesser extent than Ramo's.

 

[Anglesmith]

I wonder what the price tag would be on Lindback? He's still young and could be a bit of a reclamation project.

With Gudlevskis coming along nicely, probably not very much at all.

 

[tyflames]

I think Lindback might be the worst player in the NHL.

Slightly agree with this. He has seriously regressed from his days in Nashville.

 

[MonahanTheMan]

Slightly agree with this. He has seriously regressed from his days in Nashville.

It's too bad, really, it looked like he truly could have #1 potential for a while, despite limited showings, but he was simply God-awful this year backing up Bishop.

 

[Johnny Hoxville]

Ramo should get a shot, but not because of late season heroics, but because he's earned it next season. If we signed Reimer, he would come in and want to start, just like Ramo would come in and want to start. They would battle, and someone would prove themselves the starter. The other goalie would still get in their share of games, likely around 30, but a competitive battle is good for goalies. Look at Bernier this season, neither goalie was the starter, but both played very well, and eventually Bernier proved himself to be the better starter option. Say what you want, but before Reimer lost all confidence in himself near the end of the year, he was a stud in Toronto, I remember specifically his shutout against Pittsburgh that was essentially a 60 minute highlight reel.

He is a good goalie, and I think he would either become a starter here, or push Ramo to be an even better starter than he already is(which don't get me wrong, is a better starter than Reimer).

I'm all for healthy competition, but I do not want what happened in TO this year to happen here next season. Ramo does deserve a shot, and bringing in another goalie like Reimer tells Ramo, we do not have confidence that you are capable of being our starter, it's somewhat of a slap in his face after he has performed so well. If for any reason Ramo were to struggle next year, then I would fully support getting Reimer without a doubt. I think he is a quality goalie who had some struggles this year. I just do not think we need to acquire a starter, we need a backup which is why I'm against spending assets to get Reimer.

 

[p_macc1987]

Oops, forgot about him. It was awhile before that anyways.

Joey MacDonald ?

 

[Hand of Gaudreau]

I'm all for healthy competition, but I do not want what happened in TO this year to happen here next season. Ramo does deserve a shot, and bringing in another goalie like Reimer tells Ramo, we do not have confidence that you are capable of being our starter, it's somewhat of a slap in his face after he has performed so well. If for any reason Ramo were to struggle next year, then I would fully support getting Reimer without a doubt. I think he is a quality goalie who had some struggles this year. I just do not think we need to acquire a starter, we need a backup which is why I'm against spending assets to get Reimer.

What happened in TO had nothing to do with the goaltending situation, in fact I'd suggest as far as goaltending goes, we would be lucky to have here what TO had this year. Their issue was team defense. Their goaltending was outstanding, due in no small part to Reimer. I truly believe that the competition between Reimer and Bernier, brought out the absolute best in Bernier, and their absolute collapse had more to do with luck catching up with them and Bernier getting injured than with Reimer's goaltending. I mean if you don't play a goalie for a month and a half then tell him to carry your team, you're in for a bad time.

To me, bringing Reimer in, isn't bringing in another starter, it's bringing in a young backup goalie who has a lot of potential to be a starter, and that potential is what will drive Ramo to play his best night in and night out, because he will know that if he doesn't play well, there is another goalie on the team that is capable of playing well when given a chance.

Also, you must factor in that this team wants to make the playoffs next year, so you need a goalie that cannot just play 25-35 games, but that can win the majority of them, and I believe Reimer is capable of that. Most people seem to be expecting that Ramo will be Kiprusoff and see 65-75 starts and that the back-up is just a formality, but that just isn't going to be the case. In my opinion, Ramo will see between 50-60 starts (assuming he doesn't lose the starting job) meaning that 22-32 starts will need to be made up by the backup goalie, as well as ice-time coming off the bench, as Ramo will have his bad nights, just like everyone else.

If we can get Reimer cheap, I think he is exactly what this team needs going forward.

 

[Lunatik]

Oops, forgot about him. It was awhile before that anyways.

and it continues.....

Joey MacDonald ?

I add Lee Stempniak too

 

[Calculon]

Scott Clemenson, Brian Elliott, Joey MacDonald or Thomas Vokoun in a strictly backup role.

Thomas Greiss, Jaroslav Halak or Jonas Hiller in a 1A/1B scenario.

But I wouldn't mind, or maybe might even prefer a Ramo/Ortio combo with a 50/32 split respectively.

 

[fallsviewafro*]

Joey MacDonald ?

He wasn't traded from the Leafs to us, doesn't count. Only Colborne lately.

 

[Seedling]

I thought Ortio played fantastic. Is this just a case of sending him to the Heat to get playing time instead of him being a backup with fewer reps? He looked like the real deal to me.

 

[MuffinMerc]

Joey MacDonald ?

Doesn't count he was a Red Wing

 

[Flamesarmstrong22]

I will agree with everyone that Ramo played very well and deserves to be given the chance to be the starter, however 1 decent season is not enough for me to just hand over the keys to the castle to him, especially if Burke is serious about playoffs next season, than he is going to have to get a back up IMO who will challenge Ramo for the starters job. I want Ramo to work hard to keep his job and really prove he can be a #1, berneir did it this year in toronto when he battled with Reimer to start the season but he battled hard and eventually showed everyone he can be a #1. As long as the price is reasonable, like the Col 3rd + prospect or something, than my number one choice is definitly James Reimer. Despite some saying he is awful they obviously haven't watched many leaf games and coming from someone who watches every leaf game every season I can tell you that Reimer is far from awful and I think any change of scenary will benefit him. I'm willing to bet he will be solid for whoever he goes to next and I think this time next season a lot more people will look at him as a starter

 

[Anglesmith]

I will agree with everyone that Ramo played very well and deserves to be given the chance to be the starter, however 1 decent season is not enough for me to just hand over the keys to the castle to him, especially if Burke is serious about playoffs next season, than he is going to have to get a back up IMO who will challenge Ramo for the starters job. I want Ramo to work hard to keep his job and really prove he can be a #1, berneir did it this year in toronto when he battled with Reimer to start the season but he battled hard and eventually showed everyone he can be a #1. As long as the price is reasonable, like the Col 3rd + prospect or something, than my number one choice is definitly James Reimer. Despite some saying he is awful they obviously haven't watched many leaf games and coming from someone who watches every leaf game every season I can tell you that Reimer is far from awful and I think any change of scenary will benefit him. I'm willing to bet he will be solid for whoever he goes to next and I think this time next season a lot more people will look at him as a starter

I would have to agree with you. For most of this season, strong goaltending was one of Toronto's biggest assets. The two goalie system definitely worked for them.

 

[Rangediddy]

What's Antii Raanta's status? Would he be available? He'd be a solid backup/1b for us.

Just not sure if he re-signed or not?