Koskinen Contract: good deal or overpayment?

[ThreeOfAPerfectPair]

Bit of a debate amongst Oiler fans and media right now, where does HF weigh in? Is Koskinen a starting goaltender?

Click to read more...

 

[Rich Nixon]

I mean, it might be a good deal if he plays up to it, but that seems unlikely, and there's just no evidence so far he earned that contract. It's absurd.

 

[Hopelesslucicfan]

It's a massive gamble based on 10 elite games, and 17 average to below average games.

This organization has been gambling and losing forever. Even if Koskinen were to suddenly become the best goalie in the NHL, this signing is still bad as of this moment

 

[pabst blue ribbon]

Rushed and unnecessary

 

[Henkka]

Could be good, could be bad. You don't take this kind of risks with a starter.

It's already on the Viktor Fasth way. Hot start, then trending down like many new goalies do.

Fasth was out of the league after 63 games in 3 years.

 

[Thrasymachus]

Even if it turns out to be a good deal and Koskinen plays well, idk why they needed to do this deal now

 

[Del Preston]

I like Koskinen but there was no reason to give him this much so soon. What risk is there in waiting until April?

 

[WetcoastOrca]

Man, I hate when people pile on the Oilers but why the hell are they paying an unproven 30 year old this type of money and term.
It’s like not having enough money to retire and going to Vegas and putting all your savings on Red 30 on the roulette wheel.
It could work....

 

[DFF]

Chia really shows good leadership with the signing. You have to have conviction and go for it

Good job! Keep it up!

 

[Drivesaitl]

Total overpay. Chia can f*** right off. Somebody confiscate all phones and paperclips this fool has.

 

[oobga]

Big time gamble. He's shown flashes in his 27 NHL games since 2011. But many a goalie that amounted to nothing or just a backup has been a god for a month.

Just not what you hope the team would be gambling on for years 2, 3 and 4 of McDavid's 8 year deal. It's a pretty damn important position. And the worst part is, there is a lot of season left they could have used to make a more educated decision. The overconfidence our management group has has not waned one bit.

 

[T-Funk]

It's an overpay and I really like Koskinen.

On a day he should have been fired, Chia takes a huge shit on all the fans.

 

[ITM]

Casey DeSmith just signed a three year deal for $1.25M per...Uuuhhhh...

 

[A91]

It's an overpay and I really like Koskinen.

On a day he should have been fired, Chia takes a huge **** on all the fans.

Agreed.

 

[Taluss]

2 much 2 soon

 

[super6646]

Just bad. Even if he breaks out and somehow becomes an amazing starter due to sheer luck, its still a bad deal given what he is. And man, if he can't handle the starters load, Edmonton is screwed.

 

[Bounces R Way]

For a 31 year old goalie with 31 total NHL games of experience to get this deal the best you could hope for is palatable, especially considering the defense Edmonton ices year in year out.

 

[rickysusedsht]

Needed to prove himself. That short stint isn't enough and at 30, doubt he is on the uptick more like the back slide. I like Kosky but man this seems really shortsighted

 

[Snakepit]

I like Koskinen but even if it was 3x3 I'd be a tad wary.

 

[613Leafer]

Whenever a goalie signs a UFA deal for ~3-4.5M, it's clear that the team is rolling the dice and hoping for the best (e.g. Reimer, Neuvirth, Mason, Elliott, Hutton, etc). If they were a clear legitimate starter, they'd be getting ~5-6M+.

In saying that, there doesn't seem to be any reason for Koskinen to get on the high-end of the "roll the dice" range. If Neuvirth, Elliott, Hutton, etc are ate ~2.75M, then Koskinen should be around that or even lower.

 

[Raccoon Jesus]

Just utter, utter mismanagement, even if the gamble turns out to be correct.

I'm sorry, Oilers fans.

 

[Boud]

Whenever a goalie signs a UFA deal for ~3-4.5M, it's clear that the team is rolling the dice and hoping for the best (e.g. Reimer, Neuvirth, Mason, Elliott, Hutton, etc). If they were a clear legitimate starter, they'd be getting ~5-6M+.

In saying that, there doesn't seem to be any reason for Koskinen to get on the high-end of the "roll the dice" range. If Neuvirth, Elliott, Hutton, etc are ate ~2.75M, then Koskinen should be around that or even lower.

Pretty much sums it up. I guess things are a bit different with Koskinen given that he was a pretty good goalie in the KHL and would get paid there no matter what. Guys like Hutton, Elliott, and etc don't have a track record there and while they would certainly be able to get a contract in the KHL I doubt they could use it as leverage like Koskinen most likely did.

That being said, this is a pretty big gamble. The goalie market has been so wild in the last few seasons that you see guys get paid quite a bit for very small sample size. If I'm the Oilers I don't think I do this deal, we've seen these backfire more often than not. I would've rather given him a 1 year deal (even if would be higher salary) just to aleviate the risk of having to pay the guy if he can't keep up the pace.

Can't overlook the "potential" that this could be a great deal though... Just very unlikely and most importantly unecessarily risky. I mean the Oilers could've given up not much and acquired a Craig Anderson type of guy who only has a year left.

 

[Rubi]

Well I guess that Chia didn't decide to do this all on his own so Oilers being Oilers I guess.. The years change but management stays the same.

 

[PatriceBergeronFan]

Chiarelli is desperately praying for another Tim Thomas. I think Thonas' original extension was only $1 million per year however...

 

[Chef de Cuisine]

chia is just trolling us at this point