TORONTO – It’s pretty clear that Dave Nonis wants to add another goaltender to the Toronto Maple Leafs organization before the trade deadline.
Amid speculation that the Leafs GM has inquired about Roberto Luongo, Miikka Kiprusoff and Nikolai Khabibulin in recent days, Nonis acknowledged to reporters Monday that he’d like to pick up a veteran puckstopper if the price is right.
That will be much easier said than done in the current trade market.
With the Leafs seemingly on the verge of ending a nine-year playoff drought, Nonis would like to add someone who could support James Reimer and Ben Scrivens, if needed. Toronto’s goaltending duo has been solid this season but those players have just 123 games of NHL experience between them.
Reimer has also battled some injury issues the last couple years – although he appears to be in a groove right now.
“His play has been very good,” Nonis said of Reimer. “There’s no reason why that can’t continue — even if we brought another goaltender in — James has done a good job to show us that he can play a lot of games and play at a high level.”
Perhaps the biggest issue for the organization comes at the AHL level, where Jussi Rynnas and journeyman Drew MacIntyre have been platooning for the Marlies. Neither would fill Leafs management with confidence if they had to be called up down the stretch.
“Those players don’t have a lot of playoff experience themselves,” Nonis said. “If you had someone there who had played a lot of playoff games, maybe some NHL playoff games, and is a real good third then you probably wouldn’t be in the market at all.
“Having someone there that could help in the event that we need him just makes sense for us.”
The possibilities include another journeyman-type player who is currently flying below the radar or one of the big-name goaltenders that will receive lots of air time during our TradeTracker coverage on Sportsnet.
However, each of those players comes with some question marks:
Luongo is under contract through 2022 and would obviously take over the No. 1 job in Toronto. At this stage in the Leafs development, should they give up on having Reimer in that role? The price tag is also an issue since Nonis doesn’t want to part with young players or draft picks and the Canucks are unwilling to simply give Luongo away.
Kiprusoff has struggled mightily this season (his .873 save percentage is a shade below the Toskala Line) and may not be willing to play for another team is he’s moved. He also carries a $5.83-million cap hit next season, although his actual salary is just $1.5-million.
Khabibulin is arguably the best short-term option because he has an expiring contract. The 40-year-old also sports a .930 save percentage in eight appearances this year. However, the Oilers are solidly in the Western Conference playoff race and there has been some talk of a contract extension with them.
The trade deadline seems to have created less of a distraction around the Leafs than normal this season, no doubt helped by the team’s recent 5-0-3 run and the big cushion it has built in the standings.
Unlike in years past, Toronto also isn’t looking to sell off any assets for draft picks.
Even with the team getting a four-day break between games during the deadline period, there have been no obvious signs of distraction.
“I feel like the guys have forgotten about it a little bit,” forward Nazem Kadri said. “Just because we haven’t really had too much time to think about which guys are on the block or which guys could be coming in or out. I think it’s been a good thing for us.”
The Leafs boast one of the youngest rosters in the league and could probably use a little more veteran savvy for the big games to come
Joffrey Lupul, a veteran among this group at age 29, believes you can never have too much experience in the dressing room — even if it comes from a veteran player that is being scratched most nights. However, he has been impressed by many of the young Leafs this year and wouldn’t want to see the team’s current chemistry disrupted.
“We’re building in the right direction,” Lupul said. “You can tell we’re close. We’re close to taking that next step and being in that upper echelon of teams.”
Nonis is also of the opinion that a little more veteran leadership would be nice, but isn’t willing to give up any of the young players it might take to get some.
In many ways, this has been a surprising season in Toronto and the Leafs GM clearly wants to give the team a little boost. He expects the phones to be busy leading in to the deadline and hopes he can pull off a deal or two.
“There’s always an urge to try to do something,” Nonis said. “There’s a want to do something. I think that’s natural for people to want to add or to change. But you better take a long walk around the block before you make a big move if it’s going to suck some of the future out of your team.”
And if nothing materializes by 3 p.m. ET on Wednesday, would he be disappointed?
“I wouldn’t be disappointed at all,” Nonis added. “Then you’re making trades just to make yourself feel good. I don’t think that that’s something that anybody wants us to do.”