Rumor: Kings went after Saros at deadline

[Kairi Zaide]

According to like...every sub 6 foot goalie in the modern era.

Your sample size amongst starting goalies (who played that role for several seasons) and not 1-2 years wonders or journeymen, not including Saros, is basically
- Halak
- Khudobin
- Turco
- Thomas
- Theodore
- Osgood
- Joseph
- Legace
- Toskala

Literally all of them besides Toskala "fell of" because of old age. Not because of their size.

 

[vipera1960]

Your sample size amongst starting goalies (who played that role for several seasons) and not 1-2 years wonders or journeymen, not including Saros, is basically
- Halak
- Khudobin
- Turco
- Thoma
- Theodore
- Osgood
- Joseph
- Legace
- Toskala

Literally all of them besides Toskala "fell of" because of old age. Not because of their size.

That’s not true, Theodore fell off at age 29. That said I think it probably had more to do with the fact the game totally changed after the ‘05 lockout and he didn’t adjust and had some bad injury problems rather than his size.

 

[Kairi Zaide]

That’s not true, Theodore fell off at age 29. That said I think it probably had more to do with the fact the game totally changed after the ‘05 lockout and he didn’t adjust and had some bad injury problems rather than his size.

Regarding Theodore, he definitely fell of compared to his absolute peak. Advanced metrics suggest he performed fairly well (not "elite by any mean") in his later seasons though, having some seasons where he performed exactly how you'd expect a typical starter to perform. He still had that period he was pretty bad after the lockout. I'm sure, as you say, the "fell off" after the lockout had nothing to do with his size, too. Toskala seems like a case similar to Theo although his pre-lockout sample size was small and he never really "rebounded" like Theo did.

My entire point was mostly to show the poster I quoted that there's nothing to suggest that established smaller goalies are more likely to fall off faster and more drastically. If anything, I wouldn't be surprised if a thorough analysis showed that large goalies (says 6'3-6'4+) are more likely to fall off faster. Smaller goalies, in order to establish themselves, might have to better master the technicalities of the position as opposed to larger goalies who might rely more on their size to block shots.

 

[GoldenSeal]

And what are the chances he plays like this if he was still in LA taking it easy?

Truth. Thing is, does LA want to run into Vegas in the playoffs with a dialed-in, heavily motivated and potentially vengeful Quick?

When dialed in and motivated, Quick has NO ceiling and will steal games like a master thief. He has a Conn Smythe, two rings and multiple hardware for great reasons.

I get trading him and from my pov it was absolutely justified, but I also get putting him on a shelf so he can't come back to haunt my team and he might do just that to the Kings.

 

[Petey But Really Jim]

Leafs should have.

 

[Soundgarden]

Leafs should have.

Leafs don't really have what it takes to get him.

 

[KevinRedkey]

I know we said it with Chychrun but I’m for sure this time, we wouldn’t be able to do it without Greig or Pinto going the other way.

If GMs didn’t see Dorion coming from a mile away already they will now.

You're probably right, but if you're not - I'd love to see it happen.

 

[Porter Stoutheart]

Don't see how it matters if the Kings or anybody else asked about Saros? He's one of the top-5 goalies in the entire NHL, and I'm sure any inquiries were shut down quickly. It's a total waste of time to talk about his size. He is so elite in every other area that it more than makes up for being 2 inches short.

I think other teams should have been chasing Korpisalo for value at this TDL. LA already won big time getting Gavrikov + Korpisalo at a bargain. Other teams really should have outbid them instead of letting them kind of get them by lowball default. That's where the market value was at this TDL. Edmonton took a good step adding Ekholm, but they should have gone that one step further and taken Gavrikov+Korpisalo away from LA.

 

[tkb81]

They wouldn't, their GM Rob Blake is a wuss

dudes cold as ice .. he traded away the best goalie in kings history .. i mean it had to be done but no one really expected him to do it .. he earned some respect from this life long kings fan

 

[Osprey]

I think other teams should have been chasing Korpisalo for value at this TDL. LA already won big time getting Gavrikov + Korpisalo at a bargain. Other teams really should have outbid them instead of letting them kind of get them by lowball default. That's where the market value was at this TDL. Edmonton took a good step adding Ekholm, but they should have gone that one step further and taken Gavrikov+Korpisalo away from LA.

I think that the fact that they're both rentals is why they were so cheap. Teams would rather have players signed beyond this year than UFAs-to-be. I bet that Edmonton is much happier to have Ekholm than Gavrikov, especially since they're not exactly a free agent destination (and a look at the weather this week, with a high of 34°F, gives one possibility why). Handing out 1st-round picks for rentals probably isn't something that Edmonton was/is interested in. LA was probably more willing to take the risk because there's a better chance of at least one of the two players re-signing.

 

[Porter Stoutheart]

I think that the fact that they're both rentals is why they were so cheap. Teams would rather have players signed beyond this year than UFAs-to-be. I bet that Edmonton is much happier to have Ekholm than Gavrikov, especially since they're not exactly a free agent destination (and a look at the weather this week, with a high of 34°F, gives one possibility why). Handing out 1st-round picks for rentals probably isn't something that Edmonton was/is interested in. LA was probably more willing to take the risk because there's a better chance of at least one of the two players re-signing.

Edmonton really should have gone for Ekholm AND Gavrikov. It doesn't matter if they are retainable longer term. They need to win now. But don't seem to acknowledge that. That's their call. But I feel like they are missing an opportunity in this year's West. They should have been able to outbid LA on Gavrikov and Korpisalo, and it doesn't make one bit of difference if the players are retainable. Tick tock, they didn't commit.

 

[Osprey]

Edmonton really should have gone for Ekholm AND Gavrikov. It doesn't matter if they are retainable longer term. They need to win now. But don't seem to acknowledge that. That's their call. But I feel like they are missing an opportunity in this year's West. They should have been able to outbid LA on Gavrikov and Korpisalo, and it doesn't make one bit of difference if the players are retainable. Tick tock, they didn't commit.

With their 1st traded away for Ekholm, it would've been hard to outbid LA for Gavrikov and Korpisalo. I imagine that Columbus valued a 1st this year over a 1st next year.

 

[Porter Stoutheart]

With their 1st traded away for Ekholm, it would've been hard to outbid LA for Gavrikov and Korpisalo. I imagine that Columbus valued a 1st this year over a 1st next year.

Yes, they should have given up substantially more. Or anyway, I think it would have been a worthy gamble. I guess we'll see. It was only ever going to be a "gamble", so even if Gavrikov or Korpisalo don't play well for LA in the playoffs, who knows what they might have done in Edmonton, we'll never truly know. I just would be THAT desperate to gamble if I was running things in Edmonton. But possibly wrong.

 

[traffic cone]

I think it's still a consideration in the long-term. Smaller goalies fall off quick. When they start to slip, they slip hard.

If you trade for Saros...you're getting a few years of elite goaltending...but how far into the future does that span?

You mean like Markstrom did?

Your argument isn’t based on anything. Total nonsense.

 

[kilowatt]

After tonight, maybe they should have held on to Quick. He seems like a man on a mission.

He was a man on a mission to be waived this year with LA, that trade might have saved what's left of his career.

The difference in SV% and GAA between Quick, Petersen, and Copley is pretty wild, and Korpisalo, a real NHL goaltender, looks to be even better.

 

[Raccoon Jesus]

I said at the time I would have done dirty things for Saros and I still would.

The tough thing to reconcile is Saros being amazing and typically-low goalie trade value.

I mean I'd trade anything not nailed down that's not named Byfield or Clarke. I would even consider Kaliyev in there especially considering TM/Blake seem determined to submarine him and Kupari and Anderson-Dolan. I know Nash would want to go there and that makes sense but LA could still put together a fantastic package of young roster players, prospects, picks.

 

[Porter Stoutheart]

I said at the time I would have done dirty things for Saros and I still would.

The tough thing to reconcile is Saros being amazing and typically-low goalie trade value.

I mean I'd trade anything not nailed down that's not named Byfield or Clarke. I would even consider Kaliyev in there especially considering TM/Blake seem determined to submarine him and Kupari and Anderson-Dolan. I know Nash would want to go there and that makes sense but LA could still put together a fantastic package of young roster players, prospects, picks.

TBH, I wouldn't go there from the Nashville perspective even if you started putting names like Byfield, Clarke, or Kaliyev on the table. None of them is a proven commodity either, even if they have a lot of potential.

This equation may change in 1 year depending on how competitive the Preds are able to be next season, and how quickly Askarov progresses. It's certainly a situation that may warrant re-visiting, with a completely different outlook possibly arising in a relatively short period of time, who knows. These things don't always move linearly.

 

[hotcabbagesoup]

I said at the time I would have done dirty things for Saros and I still would.

The tough thing to reconcile is Saros being amazing and typically-low goalie trade value.

I mean I'd trade anything not nailed down that's not named Byfield or Clarke. I would even consider Kaliyev in there especially considering TM/Blake seem determined to submarine him and Kupari and Anderson-Dolan. I know Nash would want to go there and that makes sense but LA could still put together a fantastic package of young roster players, prospects, picks.

Is Turcotte available?

 

[cool beans]

I think it's still a consideration in the long-term. Smaller goalies fall off quick. When they start to slip, they slip hard.

If you trade for Saros...you're getting a few years of elite goaltending...but how far into the future does that span?

How old was Tim Thomas again when he won the Stanley cup against the Canucks? Asking for a friend.

 

[kilowatt]

Is Turcotte available?

Yes.

 

[Kurrilino]

5'10", 170lb "small" Jhonas Enroth had a 2.17 GAA, .922% in LA.

Size does not matter as a goaltender.

Mr. Vasilevsky will disagree here

 

[Raccoon Jesus]

Is Turcotte available?

I'd speculate that at this point pretty much anyone but Byfield, Clarke are available for the right player.

Kings are going to need to reallocate salary from wingers to D and G in particular. They'll have lots of salary moving in and out soon but they have lots of suddenly waiver-eligible kids and contract slots to consider so need to start recycling them into other assets, and G and LHD are going to be the immediate needs. Saros is so desirable to me because as far as goalies go he's stable, young enough, good contract. Guys like him are rarely available and the Kings G pipeline is in shambles. I expect Blake to address it somehow this offseason between a guy at the draft and a signing or trade.

 

[Armourboy]

Nashville probably asked for Byfield or Clarke, and rightfully so.

Actually if we go on what Poile said Saros was never available to start with so there was likely no ask. The conversation probably went more like:

Blake: So what would it take to get Saros?

Poile: We will not be trading Saros.

Blake: So how about X.

 

[Nucker101]

I think it's still a consideration in the long-term. Smaller goalies fall off quick. When they start to slip, they slip hard.

If you trade for Saros...you're getting a few years of elite goaltending...but how far into the future does that span?

Isn’t Demko the one showing signs of breaking down sooner?

He was out for months, and even last night the pbp guy noticed that he was in some discomfort after making a save.

We even had that seemingly out of nowhere quote from an exec that said there’s legit concern about Demko’s longevity.

 

[Frolov 6'3]

I think that the fact that they're both rentals is why they were so cheap. Teams would rather have players signed beyond this year than UFAs-to-be. I bet that Edmonton is much happier to have Ekholm than Gavrikov, especially since they're not exactly a free agent destination (and a look at the weather this week, with a high of 34°F, gives one possibility why). Handing out 1st-round picks for rentals probably isn't something that Edmonton was/is interested in. LA was probably more willing to take the risk because there's a better chance of at least one of the two players re-signing.

Everything depends on something we unfortunately don’t know yet. If both acquisitions walk at the end of the year than it totally sucks and it was a bad trade overall (unless LA reaches the WCF or so).

If Gavrikov (perhaps even Korpisalo) does sign for a reasonable price, than obviously LA is way more “happier” with Gavrikov than a soon to be 33 year old. In hindsight the price would be extraordinary cheap if they maintain their current form.