Nuckertuzzi wrote:wafflecombine wrote:Cory will need/should get 40 (or so) of the starts just to get him into fighting trim. So we keep Lou at 5.3/year for 10 regular season games?
That would be my plan - 35 to 40 games for Schneids and Lou is our backup. The thing is it's not about him being a 5.3 mil backup but rather insurance policy, and with so much riding on this year 5.3 mil doesn't seem that much to spend on the insurance.
I've seen enough of Schneids to have all the faith in him to be our starter for years to come. However, for a guy who already hasn't played a lot of hockey the past couple seasons prior to this one and then having not played at all for 8 months, then to get thrown right into a meat-grinder of a season, you have to question how any goalie not named Martin Brodeur or Patrick Roy would fair. Not to mention having to deal with the pressure of being the no. 1 guy replacing Lu. It wouldn't surprise me at all of he's off early and needs months to gain form. He could ease into the role and there's room for error with an 82 game season. Not so with 48. It would be certainly more comforting to know you could go to Lu if you have to over Lack or Reimer or whomever.
The only complication is our damn massive hole(s) at center. If Kes wasn't injured, I'd ride Lu one more year for sure but we might have no choice but to trade him. ....Bozak though???

....might as well just get Wellwood back.
Cory has been playing in the Swiss league so he isn't coming in cold.
How will Luongo and his famously slow starts factor into this theory? Will it decrease his trade value? I have to say yes.
I would like the circus to leave town before the season gets going so Schneids can just focus on what he's good at.
Every time I look over Torontos' roster, I hate what I see. They just don't have what we need at all. Florida is a far better trading partner with numerous interesting options. So who do they have that realistically could be coming back to us?
Stephen Weiss? I think he's UFA after this season but don't know for sure. If they have any doubts about him resigning it could be an option although it would be a huge loss for them. I'd say highly unlikely to no way in hell.
Eric Gudbranson? He would be my top choice but no way they let him go. No way in hell.
Jon Huberdeau? After a very ordinary showing in UFA I have to think he has become a possibility. He still has considerable upside and possesses elite hand skills but hes a bit of a softie in my books. I suspect he's headed towards an Alex Tanguay type of pro career and I'd prefer someone with higher upside personally. I'd say more likely today than a month ago.
Alex Petrovic? I would say he is surely on Gillis's radar. He has exactly what we need looking forward but wouldn't help much for the next year or 2 maybe. An excellent prospect with an almost guaranteed upside. Would almost certainly be the key piece of a trade with Florida in my opinion.
There's also Howden, Shore, Bjugstad, Skille, Mattias etc to add onto a possible Petrovic deal. Nothing to help immediate concerns but a trade like this would help alleviate apparent shortcomings in our prospect pool.
My 2 cents