Brian Murray says “five or six teams” called on Sens goaltending

The Ottawa Senators seemed like unlikely suitors when they signed coveted Boston University star goaltender Matt O’Connor this offseason. They were already stacked with depth, with two NHL goaltenders on their roster – Craig Anderson and Robin Lenher. Things got muckier when they signed Andrew Hammond to a three-year $4.05 million deal after his stellar play in the regular season.

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With three goalies on one-way deals, Ottawa has received plenty of attention from other teams looking for a goaltending upgrade. Sens general manager Brian Murray told Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun there has been some discussions about moving one of the goalies.

“Five or six teams have called and there has been some discussion and there will continue to be. We’ll see what comes of it.”

With Hammond likely not going anywhere because of his new contract, Anderson and Lehner present two intriguing options for teams.

Anderson is a clear-cut number one goalie carrying a $4.2 million cap hit for the next three seasons. While that’s a reasonable number, the risk associated with acquiring him lays in the fact he’s struggled to stay healthy over the last three seasons, appearing in only 112 games. At 34, he’s not a spring chicken as his best years may be behind him.

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So why are teams lining up to acquire the Park Ridge, Illinois, native? Because his numbers have been eye-poppingly good when he has played. From 2012-15, Anderson ranks fifth among all goaltenders (with at least 2,500 minutes) in even strength save percentage.

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(via Hockey Analysis)

If he can stay healthy, he’s one of the better starting goaltenders in the NHL, but that’s a big if. He’d also come at a pretty high cost.

Lehner on the other hand is looking for his first chance to consistently start in the NHL.

While he doesn’t have the same amazing peripheral numbers Anderson has, he put up solid numbers across the minors and has been dependable when between the pipes for the Senators. He also has age and potential on his side. At just 23-years-old he hasn’t reached his peak yet. Ottawa would also reap the savings of holding onto Lehner opposed to Anderson. He represents a low cost gamble for teams, with a possible high reward. His cost would assumedly be significantly less than Anderson, but he will not be had for nothing. Ottawa has depth, and has made it clear they want to give up one of their goaltenders, but they’re not going to do it for free.

Lehner

The teams which should be interested are the common players in the goaltending market. As Garrioch reports, the Edmonton Oilers, San Jose Sharks and Buffalo Sabres are all looking for goalies – and the St. Louis Blues and Calgary Flames may be ‘sniffing around’ as well. With multiple teams looking for goaltenders, Brian Murray, doesn’t need to be swift and can take his time to make sure he can maximize his return.

You’d think the Oilers, who lucked into Connor McDavid, Peter Chiarelli and Todd McLellan, would have the most interest in shoring up between the pipes. Edmonton finished dead last in even strength save percentage last year (90.19) and don’t have reinforcements ready to step in. Both Anderson and Lehner would clearly be instant upgrades over what they currently have (Ben Scrivens is their only goalie on a one-way), and the Oilers have the necessary pieces to get the deal done.

While I don’t think they’ll offer up one of their young guns such as Nail Yakupov or Jordan Eberle, it wouldn’t be unreasonable to see them trade the first-round pick they acquired from Pittsburgh for David Perron in a package for Craig Anderson. On the flip-side, the Oilers are still very much rebuilding, so it wouldn’t be surprising to see them hold on to that pick.

What seems certain is Ottawa, barring an injury, won’t start the season with both Anderson and Lehner on their roster. The question is, who’s going to stay?

About Liam McGuire

Social +Staff writer for The Comeback & Awful Announcing. Liammcguirejournalism@gmail.com

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