Zee
Active member
Andy007 said:Zee said:Andy007 said:Frank E said:Peter D. said:The accumulation of draft picks is to make moves exactly like this one. The Leafs had a need, they have a whack of picks, so they burned a couple to fill their need yet still are sitting on a bunch of picks to stock the cupboards. They were likely going to use at least one pick for a goalie anyways (I still think they should to have a guy in the pipeline).
Andersen to me in an in-betweener. He's not an older goalie and UFA in waiting in Fleury or Bishop, nor is he a young can't miss like Vasilevskiy or Gibson (both of whom would obviously cost more). If he can settle in and be a top 12-15 goalie for this team over the next five years, I'll be happy. I completely trust Lou with what he's doing, so if he's going all in on Andersen, I can't argue much with it.
Let me get this straight...the Leafs accumulated early round picks to trade them away for players that'll be 27 when the season starts and sign them to 5 year $25m deals?
See, that's what I can understand them doing once the team is a couple of more years into the rebuild. It's a pretty bizarre move this early on, particularly since Andersen isn't exactly a top-tier starting goaltender.
And they haven't paid him top-tier starting money either. What's the alternative they would have done with that 30th pick? Draft a goalie and hope he develops in 3-5 years? At least with this move the Leafs should have dependable goaltending in the near term. If that helps the group play better in front of him and gain confidence knowing they have a reliable guy back there, it helps the overall development of the team.
This doesn't prevent the Leafs from still drafting a goalie in later rounds and hoping he's ready in 5 years.
The alternative(s) is/are what Carlton suggested.
Holding onto to Bernier and hoping he performs is a valid option for sure, I suggested that Bernier might rebound and have a good season in another thread, but I think we have to wait and see what other moves the Leafs have in store. I can see them flipping other guys and getting picks in return, there are many options open.