Canucks: 3 possible back-up goalie options for next season

The Vancouver Canucks are now in the market for a back-up netminder.

On Tuesday morning, the team confirmed that they were placing Braden Holtby on unconditional waivers for the purposes of a buyout. The former Washington Capital, who was one of the juiciest pieces of conversation for Canucks Twitter over the past few weeks, had one year left on his current deal at an AAV of $4.3 million.

It’s no secret that Holtby struggled mightily with the Canucks this past season. The soon-to-be-32-year-old posted subpar numbers for a second consecutive season, and never really competed for the 1A position with fellow goaltender Thatcher Demko. He did show signs of improvement in the latter half of the season but, given the team’s cap crunch heading into the offseason, as well as their long list of roster spots to fill, the Canucks had no choice but to try and deal away Holtby.

First, they left him off the expansion protected list, hoping that the Seattle Kraken, the league’s newest and 32nd franchise, would take him off of their hands as a 1B or even 1C option for next season. According to multiple reports, the Kraken had interest in Holtby as their selection, but only if Vancouver were to retain some of his salary.

Strike 1.

The Canucks also explored the trade market. Again, the interest was there for the former Vezina Trophy winner, but it also sounded like most teams wanted to wait until free agency to see if they could land their first option between the pipes instead of settling for option three or four on their rankings.

Strike 2.

At the end of the day, with the clock winding down on the first buyout window, General Manager Jim Benning and his front office staff decided it would be best to explore their third and final option. With the Holtby buyout, the Canucks were able to save $3.8 million on the cap for this upcoming season, and can now enter free agency with more financial flexibility to pursue other players.

The one issue? They’ll need someone to replace Holtby.

Given that Demko has undoubtedly solidified his position as the team’s best goaltender for at least the next five years, and that the league will be returning to an 82-game format next season, it’s even more important that the Canucks can land a reliable and steady back-up option. Qualifying for the playoffs is a must for this organization, meaning that the team will need to acquire a secondary goaltender that can secure at least 10-15 wins to get them over the Pacific Division hump.

However, given that the current crop of UFA netminders are still in their late 20’s and early 30’s, and will likely demand lucrative multi-year deals, the Canucks will need to be very selective when it comes to their next back-up. Plus, with prospect Michael DiPietro waiting in the Abbotsford wings, it would make sense for the team to look into veteran netminders that would be willing to sign for only one year.

Given that criteria, let’s take a look at three possible secondary options for the Canucks between the pipes.

1. Jaroslav Halak

There aren’t too many veteran UFA goaltenders on the market that fit the aforementioned and ideal requirements for the Canucks, but Jaroslav Halak definitely tops that list.

The 36-year-old has spent the last three years in Boston, and is recently coming off a one-year, $3.5 million deal that he signed in May 2020. Despite his age, Halak was still able to put up decently solid numbers with the Bruins, posting a 2.42 GAA and a .915 SV% over his three-year tenure.

His numbers dipped this past season, as indicated by his 2.53 GAA and .905 SV%, but Halak still achieved a winning record. In 19 regular season games, he went 9-7-4, while also posting two shutouts in the process.

Halak is also used to playing more games than expected for a back-up.

During the past three seasons, Halak has had to step up in relief on five separate occasions after starter Tuukka Rask was sidelined due to injury. Most recently, Halak suited up for 10 of 13 games between March 3rd and April 3rd after Rask suffered two separate injuries. Over than span, Halak posted a record of 5-3-2, to go along with 281 shots against and a .913 SV%.

Of course, Halak’s biggest hero moment occurred during the 2020 playoffs.

Just a few hours before their game three match-up in the first round against the Carolina Hurricanes, Rask announced that he’d be opting out of the remainder of the postseason due to family reasons. Halak had to fill in as a result, and came away with the victory to give his team a 2-1 series lead. Boston would go on to beat Carolina in five games before falling to the eventual Stanley Cup-winning Tampa Bay Lightning in six.

Given his age and where he’s at in his career, it’s expected that Halak will sign a deal with low salary structure and high performance bonus incentive, as indicated by Thomas Drance of The Athletic. However, given his previous success and consistency as a back-up, as well as how the UFA goaltending market is shaping up, Halak could also garner up to two years in his next contract, with an AAV close to $2 million.

Because of this, the Canucks will need to be careful with contract negotiations moving forward. If they are indeed pursuing Halak, they’ll need to not only make sure that they’re not taking on too big a risk in the 36-year-old, but to also find a way to keep the deal between $1M and $1.5M for no longer than one year.

2. Brian Elliott

Second on this list is current Flyers’ back-up Brian Elliott.

The Newmarket, Ontario native has been with Philadelphia for the past four seasons, and has served as one of the better 1B options in the league over that span.

The Flyers initially inked Elliott to a two-year, $5.5 million deal in July 2017, with the intention of him playing as a starter. During the 2017-18 campaign, he played the part, suiting up for just over half of the season, while posting a 23-11-7 record to go along with a .909 SV% and a 2.66 GAA.

As we all know, however, the Flyers’ goaltending situation immediately went downhill after that year.

During the 2018-19 season, Philadelphia dressed a total of eight different netminders throughout the season, trying to find some stability between the pipes. Despite the uncertainty, Elliott still managed to suit up for 26 games, solidifying his new 1B role behind up-and-coming prospect Carter Hart.

The veteran netminder continued to play well over the next two seasons, and ended up playing in at least 30 games for both years, including the most recent pandemic-shortened 56-game campaign. His numbers weren’t stellar over those two years, as indicated by his .894 SV% and 2.97 GAA, but he was still able to secure 16 and 15 wins respectively, which is exactly what the Canucks would be looking for behind Demko.

Like Halak, Elliott was also forced to step up in relief this past year, ultimately reclaiming the starting role after Hart continued to struggle. Elliott ended up playing in 22 of Philadelphia’s final 38 regular season games.

Given Philadelphia’s instability between the pipes over the past few years, General Manager Chuck Fletcher might be eyeing another contract extension for Elliott. However, if the Flyers can’t resign the 36-year-old, he should definitely be one of the frontrunners for the Canucks to seriously pursue during free agency, as long as the price is right.