Quote:
Originally Posted by getbak
Of all the goalies in the NHL who have played more than one game this season, only Stalock and Tokarski have a worse save percentage than Hiller and Ortio. Ortio and Hiller are bottom of the league for GAA among goalies with more than one game played.
Backstrom really can't make the Flames goaltending any worse.
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Well, yes, he could. He could be as bad as Stalock and Tokarski.
But at this point, it makes little difference. The season is toast. It appears that Minnesota couldn't take on Jones' salary without a large contract going the other way, and Backstrom wouldn't waive his NTC unless he was assured that he would get some playing time. If Hartley wants to give him some starts instead of Hiller, it costs the Flames nothing at this point, and keeps the promise that got Backstrom to waive.
Hiller is a dead man walking in goalie gear. And Ortio? The heck with Joni Ortio. He has massively underachieved all season, in both the NHL and AHL (and, according to Hartley, in practice before he was demoted). If he can't do any better in a contract year with an opportunity to grab a wide-open starter's job, he doesn't belong in the NHL.