Available Backup Goalies

The following are unrestricted free agents that could backup King Henrik in goal:

Ed Belfour (42 years old) - He appeared in 58 games for the Florida Panthers last year. He had a 27-17 record with a 2.77 GAA and a .911 save %. He will take the most money to sign out of the six because of the stellar numbers he had as a starter last year, despite his age. If Sather is serious of about backing up Henrik, then this would be the way to go. The problem is that there are still a couple teams that might want him as a starter, which means he would sign for more money in that scenario.

Curtis Joseph (40 years old) - He appeared in 55 games for the Pheonix Coyotes last year. He had a 18-31 record with a 3.19 GAA and .903 save %. CuJo's numbers were not as impressive as a starter last year, because the the team struggled badly. He wouldn't take as much money as Belfour to sign, but he was a starter last year and his agent will use that to drive up his price tag.

Sean Burke (40 years old) - He appeared in 23 games for the LA Kings last year. He had a 6-10 record with a 3.11 GAA and .910 save %. At this point in his career, Burke is a journeyman backup. He split time with Cloutier and Garon last year. He has a pretty good save % and would sign at a reasonable price because of his age.

J-S Aubin (30 years old) - He appeared in 20 games for the Toronto Maple Leafs last year. He had a 3-5 record with a 3.43 GAA and .890 save %. Aubin backed up Raycroft last year, but the trade that brought Toskala in means that Aubin won't be signed. This might change if Raycroft is traded soon, but Aubin didn't play that well last year. It wouldn't take too much of the cap to sign Aubin.

Robert Esche (29 years old) - He appeared in 18 games for the Philadelphia Flyers last year. He had a 5-9 record with a 4.33 GAA and .886 save %. After the team resigned Niittymaki, to backup their new #1 Biron, it meant the end of Esche's career as a Flyer. His numbers last year are pretty bad, but so was the team. After his numbers last season, he should come cheaply.

Alex Auld (26 years old) - He appeared in 27 games for the Florida Panthers last year. He had a 7-13 record with a 3.34 GAA and .899 save %. Auld was the starter for Vancouver in 2005 and put up pretty good numbers, but his tenure in Florida did not work out as well. His age makes him an intriguing option, but sometimes I think that I would rather have a more experienced goalie to backup King Henrik. His age will inflate his price tag, but his numbers last year won't allow it to go too high.
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***ZEN***
I find it difficult to have an opinion about who to sign, because goalies are so inconsistent year-to-year. Belfour would be ideal, but I don't think we have enough cap space "comfortability" to get that done unless Ed realizes he has a chance at the Cup again. CuJo seems to still have gas in the tank and makes an interesting option. Considering the signings of American-born Gomez and Drury, I could definitely see Esche wanting to come here and being a good fit. Signing Auld to more than a one year deal would also be an option assuming that Montoya is a goner, which I think HAS to happen at some point.