Quote:
Originally Posted by Strange Brew
Nothing that Treliving has done thus far makes me think he will leave the backup goalie job to a rookie, nor leave the bottom pairing on defense to a pair of rookies.
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Treliving is also a smart guy, and after going the Grossman/Wideman/Jokippakka plus two capable backups (in other organizations) route last year, I believe that he won't repeat what didn't work for this team.
Manson/Montour in Anaheim, for example are now considered huge assets, but only because they were allowed to play. Gibson ans Jones were given 1B duties for a year to prove their worth. Sometimes you have to trust your development in order to take that next step.
I'm all for buying a vet dman for Stockton as a fallback.
But we have 5 goalies in the system (if you count Schneider) who hold promise, and Rittich held the fort well in Stockton last year. If they decide to go the veteran route, I'll be worried every time Lack or Niemi or whomever is asked to take over the net. More worried than if it was Rittich, because I already know the weaknesses of Lack and Niemi.
If Rittich fails in the first five games he plays, can we really not just go out at that time and find a Lack on the cheap? If Lack fails, we bring up Rittich, and what in the world do we do with Lack?