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The Ottawa Senators have had a tough time nailing down a starting goaltender - especially in this wonky year that's been. They've finally found someone who at 29 is in the prime of his career and is saying all the right things - and is stopping the puck! What an idea that is!
So now the job gets a little easier, it's time to find a back-up. Now, keep in mind that the back-up will probably play a bare minimum of 15 games next year, it's only logical to say that Anderson will get between 60-65 starts. Looking at it from that point of view, it's not a significant number. However, as we all know by now, making the playoffs can be a fickle beast. At the end of a hard fought season you could miss by 2 point, 4 points, or lose in a shoot out like the Rangers of last year - in other words, every point counts, so this is a much more important decision than just simply putting pen to paper of the first guy that comes around. He has to fit in with the team, he has to drive Anderson and he has to get along with Anderson.
The initial knee-jerk reaction would be the re-sign Mcelhinney to a cheap, 1 year contract and call it a day. Then, move to shore up the depth in the system by re-signing Barry Brust. Sounds easy enough, shouldn't be too many issues - unless Brust wants to go overseas for the money, but he's treated as a rock star in Binghamton right now, so there's really little to indicate that he would leave.
But what happens when the Sens insist on Robin Lehner getting at least 50 starts in the AHL? All of a sudden Brust, one of the year's MVPs in the AHL, is designated to back-up...in the AHL no less. What to do with that?
Well, the other knee-jerk reaction would be to simply sign him as the back-up to Anderson next year, after all he's sporting a .925 save % for the B-Sens and is directly responsible for their rise to a playoff spot, he should be able to back-up in the NHL, right? The answer to that would be: who knows? Maybe he comes into a situation in Ottawa and absolutely sucks, not being able to handle the speed, the difference in shots between the two leagues, maybe he simple doesn't have the mental makeup, then what to do? The easiest move would be to sign another goalie - mind you this would be well into the season, so it wouldn't be as easy as it sounds - or just let it happen, but as discussed, sometimes it can come back to bite you at the end of the year. That's not to say that anyone's predicting the Sens to make the playoffs, but it would hurt if that was the reason we missed.
So, finally after Brust has made several back-up appearances and not done well, he's send back down to Bingo. Here's where it can get really tricky. If Lehner falters a bit in the AHL and Brust comes in and does what he's doing this year, Lehner will becomes a 'villain' in a town starved for playoff games. The fans there have already booed Lehner whenever he's made appearances because they prefer to have Brust in there (who can really blame them right now). Will they boo him again if he's the starter and one of the league's MVP's is riding the pine? Very likely.
There's a contingent of us who think that Lehner will need to deal with the boos, the reaction he gets from the fans down there that think this is a mistake - and there will be plenty, rest assured, the other side of the argument is that it will eventually breed contempt. Players don't like to lose, the first time Lehner falters, they'll be expecting Brust to come in - and if he doesn't, there will begin to be some friction between even the players and Lehner. Add to that the boos that will rain down and there's a situation here that can be avoided.
But is it at the expense of Barry Brust? All this to say that this is not an easy decision - at least not as easy as simply signing and designating, there's a lot of emotions that will come into play here if Brust is re-signed and made to play in Bingo. Someone that follows Bingo closely suggested to me the other day that the Sens walk away from Brust. I was shocked and questioned that in a big way, but I'm starting to understand the sentiment.
So now the job gets a little easier, it's time to find a back-up. Now, keep in mind that the back-up will probably play a bare minimum of 15 games next year, it's only logical to say that Anderson will get between 60-65 starts. Looking at it from that point of view, it's not a significant number. However, as we all know by now, making the playoffs can be a fickle beast. At the end of a hard fought season you could miss by 2 point, 4 points, or lose in a shoot out like the Rangers of last year - in other words, every point counts, so this is a much more important decision than just simply putting pen to paper of the first guy that comes around. He has to fit in with the team, he has to drive Anderson and he has to get along with Anderson.
The initial knee-jerk reaction would be the re-sign Mcelhinney to a cheap, 1 year contract and call it a day. Then, move to shore up the depth in the system by re-signing Barry Brust. Sounds easy enough, shouldn't be too many issues - unless Brust wants to go overseas for the money, but he's treated as a rock star in Binghamton right now, so there's really little to indicate that he would leave.
But what happens when the Sens insist on Robin Lehner getting at least 50 starts in the AHL? All of a sudden Brust, one of the year's MVPs in the AHL, is designated to back-up...in the AHL no less. What to do with that?
Well, the other knee-jerk reaction would be to simply sign him as the back-up to Anderson next year, after all he's sporting a .925 save % for the B-Sens and is directly responsible for their rise to a playoff spot, he should be able to back-up in the NHL, right? The answer to that would be: who knows? Maybe he comes into a situation in Ottawa and absolutely sucks, not being able to handle the speed, the difference in shots between the two leagues, maybe he simple doesn't have the mental makeup, then what to do? The easiest move would be to sign another goalie - mind you this would be well into the season, so it wouldn't be as easy as it sounds - or just let it happen, but as discussed, sometimes it can come back to bite you at the end of the year. That's not to say that anyone's predicting the Sens to make the playoffs, but it would hurt if that was the reason we missed.
So, finally after Brust has made several back-up appearances and not done well, he's send back down to Bingo. Here's where it can get really tricky. If Lehner falters a bit in the AHL and Brust comes in and does what he's doing this year, Lehner will becomes a 'villain' in a town starved for playoff games. The fans there have already booed Lehner whenever he's made appearances because they prefer to have Brust in there (who can really blame them right now). Will they boo him again if he's the starter and one of the league's MVP's is riding the pine? Very likely.
There's a contingent of us who think that Lehner will need to deal with the boos, the reaction he gets from the fans down there that think this is a mistake - and there will be plenty, rest assured, the other side of the argument is that it will eventually breed contempt. Players don't like to lose, the first time Lehner falters, they'll be expecting Brust to come in - and if he doesn't, there will begin to be some friction between even the players and Lehner. Add to that the boos that will rain down and there's a situation here that can be avoided.
But is it at the expense of Barry Brust? All this to say that this is not an easy decision - at least not as easy as simply signing and designating, there's a lot of emotions that will come into play here if Brust is re-signed and made to play in Bingo. Someone that follows Bingo closely suggested to me the other day that the Sens walk away from Brust. I was shocked and questioned that in a big way, but I'm starting to understand the sentiment.
