will Posted April 4, 2008 Report Posted April 4, 2008 i would expect the sabres to keep the backup's salary under $2mil, right? after watching miller lose the remaining body fat he had as he ran out of gas this past month, hopefully the brass realizes the value of a good backup and will pay accordingly. my list is one name long: ALEX AULD i can only expect the broons to stick with thomas/fernandez and bring up rask at some point. auld has demonstrated starter ability, and in the event the sabres can't reach an agreement with miller, the franchise won't be in complete disarray. if someone locks onto him to potentially start, there's always sanford in vancouver. good numbers. but i don't see buffalo doing anything ridiculous like making a run at huet. that would put miller over the top, don't you think? i like the kid, and i think with a capable defense in front of him, he can be stellar...but if huet were buffalo property, i wouldn't be all that upset.
darksabre Posted April 4, 2008 Report Posted April 4, 2008 I'd love to have Auld as our backup. He played very well in Boston when called upon and I'd have no problem with him here. Either that or Steve Shields. :rolleyes: I think this season was also a good thing for Ryan as he gained valuable experience in playing a very strenuous season. He may be able to condition himself better in the offseason and surprise us next season by having more stamina through the whole year.
SabresFan526 Posted April 4, 2008 Report Posted April 4, 2008 I think Auld would be great. I would not mind Johan Hedberg. And, given how Conklin played this year, I'd like this year's Conklin back in Buffalo next year. Lot's of good options, but we need upgrade and not make Miller suffer like this. He must be wiped.
johnnychemo Posted April 4, 2008 Report Posted April 4, 2008 I think having Marty waiting in the wings kept Miller sharp. With no serious competition at goaltender, he may not have the edge he needs to be at his best. Get somebody good, ie Huet, but PLAY HIM. I guarantee Huet will suck if he only sees the ice once a month.
Claude Balls Posted April 4, 2008 Report Posted April 4, 2008 I think having Marty waiting in the wings kept Miller sharp. With no serious competition at goaltender, he may not have the edge he needs to be at his best. Get somebody good, ie Huet, but PLAY HIM. I guarantee Huet will suck if he only sees the ice once a month. I think Huet is Washington's replacement for the aging Olie the Goalie. Might be the full time guy next year. i can only expect the broons to stick with thomas/fernandez and bring up rask at some point. auld has demonstrated starter ability, and in the event the sabres can't reach an agreement with miller, the franchise won't be in complete disarray. I don't know how well that is going to work out for the Bs. Fernandez was supposed to be the full time starter but his injury gave Thomas the gig and he has done nothing but impress. I don't see these guys agreeing to the goalie by committee deal. Someone will have to go, unless they can bring Belichick in to get these two to buy into the play as a team system.
Bmwolf21 Posted April 4, 2008 Report Posted April 4, 2008 I think Huet is Washington's replacement for the aging Olie the Goalie. Might be the full time guy next year.I don't know how well that is going to work out for the Bs. Fernandez was supposed to be the full time starter but his injury gave Thomas the gig and he has done nothing but impress. I don't see these guys agreeing to the goalie by committee deal. Someone will have to go, unless they can bring Belichick in to get these two to buy into the play as a team system. I think you're dead-on about Huet and Kolzig. The B's goalie situation is going to be interesting. Both Thomas and Fernandez become UFA's at the end of next year - Thomas has a $1.1M cap hit, while Fernandez's cap number is $4.333 - and Auld is a UFA after this year; his cap number was $395K but his salary this year was $600K, so he'll get a raise there. The question will be who the Bruins decide is their no.1 going forward - Thomas or Fernandez - and where Auld and Rask fit in. I think Auld could be convinced to come to Buffalo for a 15-20 game but the thing that concerns me is his play was declining until he got to play behind the B's strong defensive style. His GAA and SV% shot up dramatically in Boston, so is it a case of being a very average goalie behind a good defensive system? Year Team GP GS MIN W L T OTL EGA GA GAA SA SV SV% SO 2005-06 VAN 67 64 3859 33 26 0 6 3 189 2.94 1938 1749 .902 0 2006-07 FLA 27 25 1471 7 13 0 5 5 82 3.35 729 647 .888 1 2007-08 PHO 9 9 509 3 6 0 0 2 30 3.54 249 219 .880 1 2007-08 BOS 23 20 1213 9 7 0 5 3 47 2.32 578 531 .919 2
X. Benedict Posted April 4, 2008 Report Posted April 4, 2008 I think you're dead-on about Huet and Kolzig. How about Aubin? Miller and him have already worked together. Yomammaween.
R_Dudley Posted April 4, 2008 Report Posted April 4, 2008 How about Aubin? Miller and him have already worked together. Yomammaween. Beat Me to it I was going to mention him.... either of the A team(Auld or Aubin) works for me... anyone wonder if miller would play better if he had his little brother drew on the team ? He's an available forward
Goodfella25 Posted April 4, 2008 Report Posted April 4, 2008 Beat Me to it I was going to mention him.... either of the A team(Auld or Aubin) works for me... anyone wonder if miller would play better if he had his little brother drew on the team ? He's an available forward Maybe if he brings some of his buddies from Anaheim with him like guys named Niedermayer and Getzlaf.
X. Benedict Posted April 4, 2008 Report Posted April 4, 2008 Beat Me to it I was going to mention him.... either of the A team(Auld or Aubin) works for me... anyone wonder if miller would play better if he had his little brother drew on the team ? He's an available forward Actually I think Aubin would be a decent 20 game guy. You have to like Drew Miller's pluckyness. But he looks like an AHL forward.
will Posted April 4, 2008 Author Report Posted April 4, 2008 anyone's GAA would go up with those florida and phoenix (ahl) defenses in front of them. auld has the skills to be a much much much better backup than TBO.
Bmwolf21 Posted April 4, 2008 Report Posted April 4, 2008 anyone's GAA would go up with those florida and phoenix (ahl) defenses in front of them. auld has the skills to be a much much much better backup than TBO. The point isn't that he played behind bad defenses and had bad numbers, it's that his only really good numbers came while playing behind a trapping, defensive-oriented system for 20 games in Boston. So how can you tell if Auld would be an upgrade over T-bo?
will Posted April 5, 2008 Author Report Posted April 5, 2008 So how can you tell if Auld would be an upgrade over T-bo? living in boston, i've watched him play. subscribing to center ice, i've watched tbo play. auld is an upgrade, regardless of what's playing in front of him.
Rayzor32 Posted April 5, 2008 Report Posted April 5, 2008 Thankfully, it looks like we have a few options: http://nhlnumbers.com/freeagents.php?team=...;type=capnumber Auld, Aebischer, Sanford, Valiquette, Holmqvist... I'm looking for a decent backup for Miller, a veteran center that can win face-offs in crunch time (Sundin, Holik and Potsdam native Craig Conroy are all UFAs) and a top 4 d-man -- and we can get back to the conf. finals in '09....not holding my breath that we'll get all 3 pieces, but perhaps "Trader Darcy" will strike on draft day..
Bmwolf21 Posted April 5, 2008 Report Posted April 5, 2008 living in boston, i've watched him play. subscribing to center ice, i've watched tbo play. auld is an upgrade, regardless of what's playing in front of him. I've seen him play as well - I believe he is better than T-bo, but in reference to the bolded part of your post - the numbers suggest otherwise.
DR HOLLIDAY Posted April 5, 2008 Report Posted April 5, 2008 Is Darren Puppa doing anything these days?............. :unsure:
rickshaw Posted April 5, 2008 Report Posted April 5, 2008 How about we go out and sign a true number one goalie and put Ryan back where he belongs, backing up?
Campy Posted April 5, 2008 Report Posted April 5, 2008 living in boston, i've watched him play. subscribing to center ice, i've watched tbo play. auld is an upgrade, regardless of what's playing in front of him. It seemed Tbo never really recovered from his hip surgery. I thought it was a good signing at the time but it didn't take long to see that he's no longer an NHL goalie. Being a Vancouver fan, I've been high on Auldie for a few years. It would be awesome to see him in Bflo.
SabresFan526 Posted April 5, 2008 Report Posted April 5, 2008 Thankfully, it looks like we have a few options: http://nhlnumbers.com/freeagents.php?team=...;type=capnumber Auld, Aebischer, Sanford, Valiquette, Holmqvist... I'm looking for a decent backup for Miller, a veteran center that can win face-offs in crunch time (Sundin, Holik and Potsdam native Craig Conroy are all UFAs) and a top 4 d-man -- and we can get back to the conf. finals in '09....not holding my breath that we'll get all 3 pieces, but perhaps "Trader Darcy" will strike on draft day.. From this list, I like Hedberg, Auld, Holmqvist, Aebischer, and Ty Conklin if he is the same player next year as he was this year. There are a lot of good viable backups out on the open market and we just need to get someone who can play about 20-25 games and who can win most of those games and we're in good shape.
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