Toronto’s Goalie Graveyard Wants To Add a Victim

Talk about a tandem. (Photo “courtesy” of TheStar.com and CP)

Is this happening again?

We thought the Toronto Maple Leafs had finally found their goaltender in James Reimer and, if not, they at least had the backup they wanted in Jonas Gustavsson.

Toronto is trying to find the golden goose, but does it really exist? Reimer and Gustavsson are both fine goalies, but their play is clouded because Toronto gave up on Tuuka Rask for Jonathan Pogge, and Torontonians are still living in regret over that decision. There are only a handful of goalies in the NHL today who will give you a fine career from start-to-finish: Henrik Lundqvist, Pekka Rinne, Miikka Kiprusoff, Roberto Luongo, and Martin Brodeur. There, that’s five.

As everyone knows, the goaltender is the toughest position in sports. Well, it’s one of them… up there with starting pitchers, closers, coaches, and quarterbacks. The team’s play will often reflect the goaltender’s, and some thrive in different situations. Take Ilya Bryzgalov – fantastic in Phoenix, where all he had was shots, and mediocre in Philadelphia, where his team couldn’t be stronger.

Evgeni Nabokov is the only real possibility for a Toronto resurgence, but you can just see that going haywire. Former Leaf J.S. Giguere has been bandied about. Cory Schneider would be a fit (*he would work anywhere), but who would Toronto really trade to Vancouver in that exchange?

Fact is, Toronto is a goaltender’s graveyard right now. Healthy humans become scraps for hyenas. You need to either draft a gem, or find one in the rough, and nobody likes waiting for that. 

Yea, it sucks, but it’s part of the game.

That said, when Brian Burke puts his mind to something, he normally follows through. Dan Cloutier was on his way out of Vancouver before Burke ever was and, before Luongo took over Rogers Arena, the Canucks couldn’t figure out their masked man status either.

Welcome to the doldrums, Toronto. Or, Philadelphia, as it’s called. We’ll see you on the other side.