Waived: Scott Darling & Valentin Zykov

[Bleedred]

I say good riddance to waiving Darling. Darling has been so f***in atrocious since joining the Canes. And he's failing the eye test. I haven't kept a log game by game, but I remember one game already this year where he allowed 3 goals and all 3 of them were bad. Even in or two of the games that he played good on paper, he gave up 2 brutal goals.

He's allowed 22 goals this year and I already have him down for 9 stoppable ones. That's gotta be the highest percentage in the league out of any goalie that's played at least 5-7 games like he has. That's 41% of the goals he's allowed! And he allowed a similar percentage of poor goals to his goals against total last year!

He's BRUTAL! For a big padded monster, I can't believe how many poor goals he allows. I'm sure there's even a few goals that go in on him, that don't look bad, but usually hit goalies his size, just due to their massive girth and equipment.

I haven't seen a goalie (going by my eye test) that's worse than him, that's had a full time roster spot in the NHL since the start of 17-18. I'm actually flabbergasted that his save percentage as a Cane is .889% and not closer to something like .850%.

I mean, he is blood inducing from eyeballs bad. Just watch all of his goals against if you don't believe me and if you're still not convinced he's bad and that it's ''The Carolina Dee bro!'', then you just don't know enough goaltending, nor place a high premium on seeing when a goalie is or isn't good.

 

[HisIceness]

Since the Gerber/Ward tandem was broken up after the 2006 season, Carolina has given many opportunities to goaltenders to back up Ward w/ no avail. So many failed experiments, then we got someone who looked like they could be decent, they shit the bed the next season. Sometimes we would get someone who would perform admirably but then they would leave. It's been rough.

However, no one has frustrated me as much as Darling has. Trust me, thats saying something. Some of the worst goals I have ever seen allowed, he allowed them, and he would do it multiple times. It got to the point where the team played scared with him in net, it affected everyone in a Hurricanes sweater.

He's been given chance after chance to redeem himself, to get a shutout, back-to-back wins, timely saves, anything to save his job. He's failed every time.

 

[HisIceness]

I would hate to see Z claimed. Unfortunately our coaching staff doesn't seem to know how to use him despite him and Svechnikov showing some chemistry in the preseason. As much as I wanted Peters to leave, he IMO did a better job ultilizing players like Zykov and Warren Foegele into positions to succeed better than RBA has so far.

 

[Vancouver Canucks]

So, who's going to be the next starter? McElhinney's just too old; he's a short-term replacement.

 

[Spectra]

Hawks trade you Crawford and Anisimov in exchange for the pair and a 1st round pick. You get a top ten goalie and take on some salary, we clear some and get a pick.

Darling, at best; finds his old groove and at worst; helps with the tank for Hughes/Kakko.

Win/win.

 

[Halla]

Hawks trade you Crawford and Anisimov in exchange for the pair and a 1st round pick. You get a top ten goalie and take on some salary, we clear some and get a pick.

Darling, at best; finds his old groove and at worst; helps with the tank for Hughes/Kakko.

Win/win.

so you want a pick in the 10-15 range for crawford, who hasnt even played like a top 25 goalie this year?

 

[ShelbyZ]

So, who's going to be the next starter? McElhinney's just too old; he's a short-term replacement.

I doubt that question gets answered anytime soon.

They're probably better off riding McStarter for now rather than shelling out assets to bring in a "starter". I also doubt there's a surefire starter option available right now. And if one does become available, they'll likely have to outbid teams like the Blues, Pens and Flyers. Their only realistic options now would be to try to talk Steve Mason out of sorta-retirement, sign Lehtonen or pick another goalie off the waiver wire. All of which are pretty much the same gamble they have with the three goalies they have now.

Also, I highly doubt being waived and demoted is the end of the Scott Darling experiment. As it's been noted in this thread, the Canes probably don't want him taking starts from the kids in Charlotte. Also, since he's the only goalie they have under contract for next season, they'll probably want to see what they have in him before they decide to buy him out, or shell out assets to deal away his contract. Other than an injury, I'll bet Darling will be back once McElhinney comes back to earth and/or they realize that Mrazek is the same garbage he's been for the past 2-1/4 seasons... Obviously they want to ride a hot McElhinney, don't want to lose Mrazek yet, and needed some roster flexibility for D and F. Had they waived one the other two, a global power outage that keeps every other GM without internet/fax/phone/etc. would be about the only thing that would keep McElhinney from being on a new team today, and given his contract and the fact that a guy like Pickard got taken with an abysmal record this season, Mrazek would likely go too. Darling's contract and play since the start of last season virtually guarantees he clears and heads for Charlotte later today, which made him a no brainer to be the one waived if the Canes wanted to hang onto their goalie depth.

 

[Bleedred]

so you want a pick in the 10-15 range for crawford, who hasnt even played like a top 25 goalie this year?

Small sample size. A top 10 goalie (and Crawford is top 5 if you ask me) doesn’t have his elite status rejected due to a mediocre 16 games, when his last 300+ games before that would suggest he’s one of the better and more consistent goalies in the league.

Crawford may be toast due to vertigo, but 16 games isn’t enough of a sample size to write off a guy that’s been the league’s most consistent goalie for the last half decade. His recent condition is probably reason enough for teams to stay away though, but that would be the case even if he had been playing well this year.

I personally don’t think Carolina would be wise to do that, but only because of the vertigo and not because of how he’s played this year.

 

[DaveG]

I think this is the end for Darling in Raleigh barring major injuries. Dude's just not mentally or technically there as an nhl goalie anymore. Buyout needed to happen last offseason, definitely needs to happen this offseason now.

 

[oilers84]

I hope the oilers take a crack at Zykov

 

[Seachd]

Oilers get Zykov.

 

[UnleashRasmus]

Zykov is an interesting waiver option for sure. He easily could make sense for a team like the Oilers.

 

[justafan22]

Darling isn't being traded unless the canes retain 50%

 

[Viqsi]

I hope the oilers take a crack at Zykov

They did. https://www.tsn.ca/oilers-claim-zykov-on-waivers-from-canes-1.1218647

 

[Blade Runner]

Too bad that the Darling gong-show is over. Games with him in Carolina were fun to watch.

 

[Cardiac Jerks]

Too bad that the Darling gong-show is over. Games with him in Carolina were fun to watch.

Only for fans of the opposition.