Dani Martin

Which goalie would they rather sign?

As you know, after Montreal traded Halak, Carey Price became the only goalie on the roster. With July 1 coming they might look for Free Agents. So out of these free agents goalie, which one would Montreal rather get and why? (According to Montreal's style of play OR if your team were to choose a goalie) -Martin Biron (NYI) -Dan Ellis (NSH) -Chris Mason (STL) -Antero Niittymaki (TB) -Manny Legace (CAR) -Andrew Raycroft (VAN) -Curtis Sanford (MTL) -Vesa Toskala (CGY) -Yann Danis (NJ) - Michael Leighton (PHI) - Joey MacDonald (ANA) More info on their stats, their projected salaries, etc : http://www.habsworld.net/article.php?id=2081 ---> Acquire the goalie as the starting one, or for the back up job? Some fans say they should bring rookie Cédrick Desjardins from the Hamilton Bulldogs (http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/C%C3%A9drick_Desjardins) as a backup for Price. Good or bad idea? Cédrick Desjardins: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C%C3%A9drick_Desjardins

Public Comments

1. If they went free agency, I would say Manny Legace. He's the only goalie on that list that won't cost too much that can still give a team dependable minutes. Biron will ask too much money, Ellis can be a starter somewhere, Mason will command too much money, Niittymaki played well this year and deserves to start, Raycroft is awful, Sanford could return, but I doubt it, Toskala is horrible, Danis is bad, Leighton will be too expensive, and MacDonald is untested.
2. I don't think that bringing in Desjardins from the minors is an awful idea because he has shown that he can play well at a lower level, but he has no NHL experience, so who knows how well he can do? Giving him the backup job is sort of a risky move IMO because of this. Carey Price has not shown a level of consistency in his play since maybe the start of the 2008-09 season, and this should also be a reason why bringing in a solid veteran backup would be the best option. With that being said, I think Martin Biron is the best fit right now because well, he is a francophone from Quebec, and I think he can still handle a decent workload of 30-40 games if needed. Chris Mason would be a good option too, but his price tag would be too high because he wants the starting job. Other than that, I do not see any really good fits with the Habs. If they really want to bring in Desjardins as the backup, then they could always sign a goalie to a two-way contract as they have done the past two years with Marc Denis and Curtis Sanford and bring him up should Desjardins falter at any point. The key right now is giving Price the right amount of pressure. He should not sit on the bench for 20 games straight and he should also not start 20 games in a row. Price is better than any UFA option, even Nabokov, so they really need him to do well.
3. You can go through this whole list just listing the pros and cons of each but the one goalie I wouldn't take is Manny Legace because after tripping over the carpet he hasn't been the same goalie he used to be. I would either take Mason because he would fit perfectly in the team or MacDonald because he had a good season. I prefer Mason because he would be able to play to their expectations and he could be relyed on to win the games. Also he just has the knack of being the best he can be. So I would love to see Mason in a Montreal jersey this season.
4. I think the key is to find a veteran goalie who will be cheap, can play 20-25 games and know that is role is to help Price develop. There are not that many out there much like Bryan Hayward did way back in the day. Desjardins is an option if you don't find one but really Price needs a stabilizing veteran presence. If I were the Habs I would be in no hurry, wait to see who is still available come the end of august and a little desperate for a contract. Guys like Turco, Biron may not find the pickings that great. Legace is a great choice IMO. On that note what ever happened to Manny Fernadez? Did not get a contract last year, he could be a great option at the right price. They key is to wait and not overspend.
5. Desjardins is not an option because it would just cause another which young goalie to pick dilema, besides is Cedric ready to be up in the bigs? I haven't seen any indication of that. What they need is a veteran presance to show Carey how to handle the job. But not such a good goalie as he can take the job away. Legace would work well, Lalime too, or maybe Johan Hedberg, the rest are going to be too expensive.
6. I didnt know Danis was a Free Agent this year... but they might wanna go with Danis, he's a great goalie that's not too pricey ( no pun intended) .. I mean Price will probably get hte majority of the ice time so they dont wanna over spend ; I'm not sure how much Nittymaki would make but he'd be my first choice..but b/c he is probably in the 2 mill range I would go for either Danis or MacDonald ( being an Isles fan I've never seen these two guys disappoint in net)
7. Martin Biron, has the skills to be a #1 goalie still, if not he has experience enough for the rookies.
8. micheal leighton....he is cheap......leave the kid in the minors so he can play lots
9. huet is available.keep an open mind.
10. ideally Biron, as there has been a severe lack of Francophones on the Canadiens in recent years, but I am also aware of the pressure on french speaking players when playing on the Habs and am not convinced he can fulfill the expectations that would be put on him. a good thing about him though is he could be a mentor for Price.