You knew this was bound to happen; with so many goaltenders hitting free agency this summer and with not that many teams in need of a starter there was bound to be some goaltenders on the outside looking in.
But Marty Turco and Evgeni Nabokov?
Trends build in sports, where one or two teams have success with a certain aspect of the game and the rest of the NHL follows suit. Lately, especially after what happened in the playoffs, it seems that the NHL is looking more towards cheaper goaltenders while boosting the rest of their roster. That’s left expensive veterans like Turco and Nabokov on the outside looking in.
Before free agency began, Turco turned down an offer by Philadelphia worth $2 million a season. No exact reason was given, but you have to figure pride came into for Turco, who made over $5 million last season and wasn’t willing to take such a paycut. As it turns out, that deal would have been the most expensive contract handed to a goaltender today, as Martin Biron, Alex Auld, Antero Nittymaki, Chris Mason and Dan Ellis all received multi-year deals for less that $2 million a season.
Even Andrew Raycroft found a job.
Now, both Turco’s and Nabokov’s options are severely limited and there’s no way they’ll get the deal they had likely hoped for when the day began. Philadelphia, perhaps the one team out there still in drastic need of a starting goaltender, ended the day by saying they’re content with their situation in net if they have to go into the season with their current roster.
Even if they wanted to get one of the two they’d need to make a move for salary cap space.
There’s still a chance Turco could land with a team like the Capitals, and get a shot at the starter’s spot -- but not for anywhere close to $3-4 million like he was likely holding out for. Marty Turco is a prideful man, one who was a great leader in the locker room and did a lot for the community during his time in Dallas. And he’s still a capable goaltender.
But his desire to remain a starting goaltender at the price he wanted came at the wrong time.