Quote:
Originally Posted by Erick Estrada
So who's the odd man out in your opinion? I realize Ramo is the fan favorite here but it was largely Hiller that backstopped the team into the playoffs and in the first round playoff victory over the Canucks. I feel going with he and Ortio is the safest bet looking back on how things played out last year. Going with Ramo and Ortio is more of an unknown as Ramo was the backup last year and Ortio is still unproven.
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So many schools of thought on that late Ramo signing.
1) Hiller odd man out
2) Ortio not ready
3) asset management
4) creating competition
or clearly a combination of the two or three or even four
I think Ramo wasn't signed earlier because they were hoping to avoid the situation they are in now (3 goalies all on one way, non waiver eligible contracts) and Ramo was asking for more than they liked.
Then July 1st comes and the goalie market is quiet, and Ramo drops his demands.
I think Haynes said it on twitter too ... hard to believe they'd go back to a goaltender they benched in the playoffs last year.
For me I see Hiller as a guy that got figured out. The Ducks dumped him for that reason, but he was perfect for a team like Calgary that nobody worried too much about in terms of advanced scouting.
Then you get to the playoffs and a team that knows him well exploits him.
This year the Flames won't be able to tiptoe into games and clearly the book on shooting high on Hiller will become a larger issue game to game. The logical step for Treliving is to improve the team in that area, and an Ortio Ramo tandem is likely the best way to achieve that without blowing up the budget with big names to sign next summer.