Possible Solutions to the Islanders Goaltender Debacle

With Garth Snow and the New York Islanders possessing one too many goalies, we present a few possible solutions to the debacle.

The Islanders three goalie system has received nothing but criticism from fans and players since it started last season. But the most important factor in the situation is just that, how to fix the situation.

Here are possible solutions and how they’d play out:

Option 1, Trade Halak

This is the most called for solution by the Islanders fanbase, and, ironically, the hardest. Halak carries a $4.5 million cap hit and there are very few teams in the NHL that are both in need of a goalie and can take on that the salary.

However, there are a few.

Carolina Hurricanes

While the idea of trading to a division foe sounds rather off-putting, the Hurricanes are probably the best-suited team to take on Halak’s contract. Not to mention they are in desperate need of a proven starting goaltender. Eddie Lack did not pan out with Carolina posting a .901 save percentage last year and Cam Ward continues to muddle in mediocrity (.909 last season).

With about $17 million left in cap space, the Canes can comfortably take on Halak and whoever he may be packaged with and most likely waive Lack.

To Carolina:
Jaroslav Halak, 2nd Round Pick

To Islanders:
Jeff Skinner

Winnipeg Jets

Like the Hurricanes, the Jets have had problems in the goaltending position for some time. After waiving longtime starter and underachiever Ondrej Pavlec, the Jets have turned to rookies Connor Hellebuyck and Michael Hutchinson to duel over the starting position. While both goaltenders have

While both goaltenders have a tremendous upswing, having two rookies in net is a recipe for disaster should one of them start crumbling. Halak could be an ideal fit if Winnipeg is willing to put their full confidence in one of the two in the future.

There is an issue when it comes to the return for New York. If they would like to solve the issue of finding John Tavares a consistent RW player they could take Wheeler from Winnipeg as a possible option. If that’s the route they elect to go it would take a little more to do so, probably a defenseman.

To Winnipeg:
Jaroslav Halak, Calvin deHaan, 2nd Round Pick

To Islanders:
Blake Wheeler, 3rd Round Pick

Dallas Stars

In 2016, the Dallas Stars had the best record in the Western Conference and were damn close to clinching the President’s Trophy. They achieved this with one of the league’s worst goaltending duos.

Both Kari Lehtonen and Antti Niemi are miraculously mediocre at best and at worst … oh boy. In 2015, the Stars finished 25th overall in team save percentage. The five teams that preceded them? The Canadiens, Blue Jackets, Jets, Hurricanes and Flames. None of those teams are playoff teams.

It’s clear if Dallas wants to blow open their cup window they will need at least one proven NHL caliber goaltender and neither of their current options will cut it. The Stars only have one obstacle in their way when it comes to acquiring a proven starter, their current options.

Niemi and Lehtonen both have NTC’s in their contracts and cannot be moved. Fortunately, Lehtonen’s NTC is limited and he can select which teams he would want to move to. Assuming the Stars succeed in moving one of their goaltenders, this is somewhere Halak can easily wind up as Dallas was rumored to have been calling for Fleury and Bishop this past offseason.

To Dallas:
Jaroslav Halak

To Islanders:
2nd Round Pick

Option 2, Trade Greiss

This is, by far, the easiest option to exercise and the one that makes by far the most sense. There are a plethora of teams in the NHL looking for a reliable 1A option in net and Thomas Greiss is the crème de la crème in terms of available backup goaltenders.

After helping Tavares carry the Islanders out of the first round last season and after setting career numbers and showing no signs of slowing down, Greiss would be a sought after commodity.

Los Angeles Kings

As if this wasn’t an obvious enough first choice, the Kings are depleted in terms of goaltenders after Jonathan Quick was sidelined for the next three or so months. To make matters worse, backup Jeff Zatkoff was lost to injury as well. The Kings have nowhere to turn but to the trade market.

Yes, they signed Anders Lindback to a tryout, but Lindback also earned the nickname “The Giant who can’t stop a beachball.” He’s rocking a stellar .904 save percentage and a 2.87 GAA to boot, not to mention his career numbers are under 500. Oh, and he’s never won a playoff game. You might remember him as the guy who got the Tampa Bay Lightning swept the year before they went to the finals.

Essentially, the Kings are desperate and primed to overpay for a reliable option in net while their starter rehabs. Best of all, the Kings have a little over $1.5 million in cap space and Greiss’ contract is right at $1.5 million. Someone would likely come back to the Islanders and if Snow plays his hand right, he could land a winger for Tavares.

To Kings:
Thomas Greiss

To Islanders:
Tyler Toffoli

San Jose Sharks

A reunion with his original team could be in the cards for Thomas Greiss. San Jose is seeking a second consecutive trip to the Stanley Cup Final this year. If they want to get there, they’re going to need not one but two reliable goaltenders. Their starter, Martin Jones, is coming off a phenomenal first season in net but the question lies in the backup for San Jose.

Rookie Aaron Dell is untested and unreliable, despite his one career win over the Islanders. San Jose would undoubtedly feel much better taking on a proven backup and sending Dell back down to the minors.

But when it comes to acquiring a backup in San Jose it would mean that salary needs to go back to the Islanders, since the Sharks have under $1 million in space.

Here’s where the Islanders can get crafty. Brent Burns is a free agent at the conclusion of this season. While he would like to stay in San Jose, it’s not a guarantee and Burns is giving negotiations time so he can listen to the open market.

If the Islanders feel like searching for a Tavares’ winger by means of, say, Tomas Hertl, they could offer a proven defenseman in return to help soften the potential blow of Burns’ departure to SJ.

To Sharks:
Thomas Greiss, Calvin deHaan, 1st Round Pick

To Islanders:
Tomas Hertl

Toronto Maple Leafs

The Toronto Maple Leafs are in year two of the official start of yet another rebuild. But there is reason to be optimistic in Toronto. With Mike Babcock at the helm, as well as Lou Lamoriello as GM, the Leafs will be in good hands in the foreseeable future. In the meantime, the rookies need to grow into their roles, including veteran goaltender Frederik Anderson.

The Leafs believe that there is an overwhelming amount of pressure. He walked out of a situation in Anaheim that had him questioning his role with the organization to being the undisputed No. 1 goaltender for Toronto for the next five years. In a Canadian market, especially that of Toronto, that’s a big burden to bear.

To help him alleviate this stress, or rather to get accustomed to his role, the Leafs are reportedly seeking a veteran 1A they can turn to when Anderson needs the night off. Toronto feels that they do not have this need and are turning to the market.

Toronto’s tied up in terms of salary cap. Salary would have to come back to the Isles but it’s hard to imagine that anything of value would be tossed in the isles direction. The Leafs do not want to part with any of their young prospects, and for good reason. They’re doing the rebuild the right way, giving their players time to flesh out and building through the draft and free agency.

Toronto would only take Greiss and, similar to the Grabner trade, probably toss back several mid to low end prospects.

To Leafs:
Thomas Greiss

To Islanders:
2nd Round Pick
OR
Two mid-range prospects
Two low-end prospects

Option 3, Trade Berube

I don’t see this as the likely fix that management performs. What caused this issue in the first place was that Snow was not eager to let JF Berube walk so easily and letting him go for nothing would make Snow look extremely foolish. However, with prospects Ilya Sorokin in the system and banging on the door, maybe riding the current tandem isn’t a terrible idea.

But to be completely honest, the only way a team would take on Berube is if they trade a very low-level draft pick (probably fourth or fifth rounder, no higher) or send another prospect in return. Berube is largely untested and has proven little in his brief NHL stint. He has not even started a single game this season.

Realistically speaking, there are two ways that Berube can go, by means of waivers (and he would most likely be taken) or traded for a very low-level pick.

Concluding Thoughts

Ultimately, one goalie has to be moved. Retaining all three goalies have been detrimental to their numbers, and, more importantly, the development of Berube. Snow knows exactly what he needs to get done and it remains to be seen how he does it.

According to David Pagnotta:

It looks like we’ll be hearing of a move within the next couple of weeks. For fans, the team and the goalies, it cannot come sooner.