Our Goalie Situation

[MarkT]

I keep seeing it pop up over and over again in different threads, so I feel like we need to have a thread where people can voice their opinions about our current and future goaltending situation. Ever since Grubauer went down in the playoffs, then Francouz played poorly and got injured, there seems to be a growing number of people here who seem to believe we need a new starting goalie. This is a thread for those people.

I'm not on that side of things, and maybe we can have some discussion and hash this out one way or another so we don't have to keep having the arguments in every thread.

For the record, the main reason I'm happy with our goaltending situation is that Grubauer was 5th in the league at even strength save percentage among goalies who played at least 20 games last season. The only goalies ahead of him were Khudobin, Rask, Kuemper, Allen and he tied with Jarry. Francouz, meanwhile, was tied for 21st with Raanta, Halak, Koskinen, and Varlamov. He was also ahead of Hart, Korpisalo, Andersen, Georgiev, Price and Gibson, to name a few.

Also, even if you don't care about even strength save percentage, then it was Francouz tied for 5th and Grubauer at 18th in overall save percentage (Francouz was awesome on the PK this year and Gruby was average, but which goalies put up great PK numbers seems to vary wildly from year to year).

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[Northern Avs Fan]

The frustration comes from the goalies costing the Avs a chance at the conference finals.

Grubauer lost them game one. 3 goals allowed on 10 shots.

Then Francouz struggled mightily in games two, three, and four. Hutchinson was solid in five and six, but was bad in game seven.

I’m less concerned about Grubauer, but you never know when his groin is going to go. That’s the issue with him.

I would look at getting a new goaltender. There are very few off-seasons that have this many goalies available via trade, or free agency.

 

[Bonzai12]

The save percentages are nice but at least some portion of that stat is a product of the surrounding team/defense.

I think goalie is the weakest link on the team. It’s not awful, but it’s the weakest link on a very skilled squad.

 

[xbestboybandever]

Grubauer has not proven to be a reliable 1A goalie. He’s been good when he is on, unfortunately inconsistent play and a troubling injury history have created this situation. Francouz got exposed by Dallas and finding a solid backstop could do wonders for this team. Think of how awesome Varly was before the injuries crept in.

 

[Pokecheque]

I'd be more willing to overlook the fact that he got injured three separate times this season and postseason if he were a bona fide starter or near-elite goaltender. He's not. He's been a fairly good starter for the Avs, but just hasn't solidified the spot against either Varlamov a year ago or Francouz now. The injury issues just take a glaring question and make it almost impossible to ignore.

Again, I think Sakic went about shoring up the goaltending the right way. He went out and got a "1B" goalie for a cap dump and pick who had the potential to be a 1A, He went out and got the best starter not in the NHL and gave him a year in the minors to get acclimated. It worked out phenomenally during the regular season, even though both goalies hit a severe downturn (Grubs and Varly did something similar the season before IIRC) around the mid-point. But this team can't keep relying on their third goaltender to save their bacon in the postseason. It may require a larger investment than what they were hoping.

Anyway, if they choose to stick with this tandem, so be it. But I'd like them to really take a good, long look at what's out there and see if there aren't other options.

 

[Cousin Eddie]

I personally think Grubauer is a fine starting goalie. The issue is dependability. Whether it’s Grubauer, Carey Price or Patrick Roy as our starter, it only takes one injury to have to switch to the backup and Francouz simply didn’t play up to standard.

I’d like to replace Francouz (who’s contract will definitely still be valued by other teams) with another capable starter so that we have a solid tandem with Grubauer. Darcy Kuemper is my favorite option for this.

 

[tucker3434]

My problem is Francouz. I have no idea what he is anymore. He was so much worse during the playoffs than he ever has been. Maybe he was injured? I don’t know. What I do know is that goaltending is the reason we aren’t playing right now, and I don’t know how comfortable I am in just assuming that Francouz was injured and will bounce back. Sakic and Bednar have more info on his injury and how long he might have been playing with it. I guess I trust them to make the call.

 

[TatteredTornNFrayed]

I couldn't stop thinking how we eventually gave up on Varly because we couldn't rely on him to stay healthy, and then Varly remained healthy and Grubs couldn't finish the playoffs.

 

[Avsboy]

Grubauer's groin can't be trusted. Francouz mental health can't be trusted.

 

[John Mandalorian]

My problem is Francouz. I have no idea what he is anymore. He was so much worse during the playoffs than he ever has been. Maybe he was injured? I don’t know. What I do know is that goaltending is the reason we aren’t playing right now, and I don’t know how comfortable I am in just assuming that Francouz was injured and will bounce back. Sakic and Bednar have more info on his injury and how long he might have been playing with it. I guess I trust them to make the call.

The magic is gone? Does he even look at you the same way anymore?

But seriously, I feel similarly. I don’t think we should blame injury. It seems more like it’s shell shock, which one could loosely classify as an injury.

I’d also say that it’s not like Kuemper and other goalies don’t get injured. So there is some trepidation with that scenario too. But if the first goalie is injured, I don’t feel like we can trust Francouz.

Another issue I find slightly problematic is that people keep talking about the window until MacKinnon gets his next contract. People talk about acquiring slightly bad contracts who can help in the interim. But what about after MacKinnons contract when we can assume we will have less flexibility? Are we going to be needing players who are young now to step into roles then? Wouldn’t we need the draft picks and current prospects for that? I wouldn’t mind trading up for Askarov, but again, do we need the assets that it would cost for when we have to start giving bigger contracts to our core players? The young players we have today or will be who we rely on after MacKinnon, Landeskog, and Makar get new deals.

 

[CharlesPuck]

Two new goalies please.

 

[Pokecheque]

I couldn't stop thinking how we eventually gave up on Varly because we couldn't rely on him to stay healthy, and then Varly remained healthy and Grubs couldn't finish the playoffs.

Isles may have just lucked out since he only had to play 45 games this season, that's not even as much as the 49 he played last season for the Avs or the 51 he played before that f***ing idiot Tomas Jurco traipsed in the final game of the season and landed on his leg. We'll see how he does against Tampa. He struggled against a Philly squad that barely managed 20 shots on him per game.

 

[Hennessy]

People are just upset following the series loss. Grubauer getting injured and Francouz forgetting how to be a goalie get blown up into demands for instant answers to a question no one should really be asking.

It sucks that Grubauer got injured when he did, but until he shows that his groin will be a recurring issue, I don't see the need to panic on him. And while Francouz didn't make any friends with his miserable performance, it's not like anyone could have predicted his implosion following an excellent regular season.

Both guys deserve the benefit of the doubt. There isn't a pressing need to go out and shop for a new goalie, let alone two. It's ridiculous. Once some time has passed and people get off their emotions following the loss, I think we'll see a lot less of these suggestions.

 

[Foppa2118]

Isles may have just lucked out since he only had to play 45 games this season, that's not even as much as the 49 he played last season for the Avs or the 51 he played before that f***ing idiot Tomas Jurco traipsed in the final game of the season and landed on his leg. We'll see how he does against Tampa. He struggled against a Philly squad that barely managed 20 shots on him per game.

That still pisses me off.

Idiot AHLer takes out an NHL starting goaltender for the playoffs, because he's trying to showoff for his non playoff team at the end of the season with a reckless move he never should have tried.

 

[El Travo]

The problem with our goaltending over the past few years is that they heavily rely on athleticism and reacting quickly which always has a risk of a groin injury. We've always had an issue of goalies going down on self-inflicted injuries. It would be nice to go shopping around for a big, positional styled goalie who can actually handle the puck. That sounds an awful lot like Carey Price unfortunately. Damn shame about his contract because he'd probably be perfect.

 

[Richard88]

The problem with our goaltending over the past few years is that they heavily rely on athleticism and reacting quickly which always has a risk of a groin injury. We've always had an issue of goalies going down on self-inflicted injuries. It would be nice to go shopping around for a big, positional styled goalie who can actually handle the puck. That sounds an awful lot like Carey Price unfortunately.

Kuemper?

 

[El Travo]

Kuemper?

Would Arizona even entertain the idea of trading him though?

 

[Richard88]

Would Arizona even entertain the idea of trading him though?

They only have 1 pick in the first 3 rounds of the next 2 drafts (and if they resign Hall it would be zero picks), so they're likely going to want to move some guys for picks.

Kuemper is their best asset to use to get a 1st, and with Raanta/Hill they would still have a reasonably good tandem for next year.

 

[Moosehead1]

I keep seeing it pop up over and over again in different threads, so I feel like we need to have a thread where people can voice their opinions about our current and future goaltending situation. Ever since Grubauer went down in the playoffs, then Francouz played poorly and got injured, there seems to be a growing number of people here who seem to believe we need a new starting goalie. This is a thread for those people.

I'm not on that side of things, and maybe we can have some discussion and hash this out one way or another so we don't have to keep having the arguments in every thread.

For the record, the main reason I'm happy with our goaltending situation is that Grubauer was 5th in the league at even strength save percentage among goalies who played at least 20 games last season. The only goalies ahead of him were Khudobin, Rask, Kuemper, Allen and he tied with Jarry. Francouz, meanwhile, was tied for 21st with Raanta, Halak, Koskinen, and Varlamov. He was also ahead of Hart, Korpisalo, Andersen, Georgiev, Price and Gibson, to name a few.

Also, even if you don't care about even strength save percentage, then it was Francouz tied for 5th and Grubauer at 18th in overall save percentage (Francouz was awesome on the PK this year and Gruby was average, but which goalies put up great PK numbers seems to vary wildly from year to year).

His only knock, like varly before him was injuries. Gruby is a #1 goalie. But for some reason with the aves we don't get to see a #1 goalie play a full season + playoffs without injury. Is it practice? Training? nutrition? Totally f***in bad luck?

Is it the way the aves play, the shots our system allows? Too much lateral movement? Not a strong net front presence?

 

[The Abusement Park]

Kuemper?

Also injury prone.

 

[SoundwaveIsCharisma]

I still think the best move is to get Markstrom, to further the Avs/Canucks pissing contest

 

[CharlesPuck]

What happened to Markstrom so that Demko had to come in?

 

[shadow1]

Ultimately the Avs aren't a team built around goaltending. Most guys are going to look good playing behind the Avs. And Grubauer has been really good in the playoffs and fine overall, but the bottom line is - for one reason or another - he's only produced two 18 win seasons in two years.

I don't think Sakic and the Avs will feel they owe Grubauer anything going into the final year of his deal. If the club can find a goalie they think will be more reliable, I think they're pursue him.

 

[henchman21]

I'm not a real big fan of spending to get another marginal goalie here. Pay up to get the best or shore up the depth (which I'd prefer getting a high end prospect). Grubs having injury issues sucks, but when he's playing, he can be as good as any patch option we are talking about. Frank was a big let down, and I wouldn't want to enter next year without somebody to challenge him... but he's the most likely player to stay out of Grubs, Hutch, and him if the Avs make a move.

To me, Gibson should be plan A, B, and C... Then Elvis D. Then Askarov E (I know he doesn't solve the issue next year, but it is a long-term solution).

 

[Ararana]

Put the pads on Zadorov. This is a can't-lose scenario.