Pickard is a Leaf (Marlie) and Lindberg is not
By Jon Steitzer
6 years agoFew things bring me the same joy as a Leaf trade. I guess one thing that brings me more joy is a trade that I’ve been pining over for a couple of days. That trade is the acquisition of Calvin Pickard from the Vegas Golden Knights, and all for the low, low cost of Tobias Lindberg and a 6th round pick. Pickard will initially start with the Marlies.
“But they could have had him for free!”
Sure, that’s true, but they would have had him on the NHL roster and he wouldn’t have been able to get a few reps in the AHL before coming up to join the Leafs. This deal also allows the Leafs to let go of someone from their crowded AHL winger inventory keeping their contract level the same. Also, and this doesn’t get considered often enough, even though Rogers and Bell print money they probably like the idea of money out when they are moving money in.
What did the Leafs give up?
A late pick that would probably be used on a telephone pole dressed as a defenseman and a smallish winger who seems destined for great things in the AHL. Tobias Lindberg was all well and good when he was a return for Dion Phaneuf, but now we can acknowledge he was a hit or miss prospect who seems to be leaning more towards miss.
What did the Leafs get?
As always, I yield most of goaltending analysis to the expertise of Cat Silverman, this time in the form of an article she wrote on him following the World Hockey Championships...
At even strength, Pickard finished his 2016-17 season with a 0.913 save percentage, sitting a good leap above his numbers when special teams were factored in.In a league-wide comparison, his even-strength numbers were still toward the bottom.Compared to his own starter, though, Pickard held the clear advantage. Through 24 games before going down with injury, former Vezina Trophy finalist Semyon Varlamov boasted just a 0.902 save percentage in 5-on-5 situations.Pickard was the only one of Colorado’s four goaltenders to appear in net during the season and finish with an unadjusted save percentage above 0.900; at even strength, he was the only one to even reach 0.910. Spencer Martin put up an 0.867 save percentage at even strength through three games, and Jeremy Smith sat just above the 0.900 marker through 10 appearances.
Okay, this may not sound ideal, but please consider that last season’s Avalanche team was historically bad and how much better Pickard fared than Varlamov. He did have a much better World Hockey Championship…
Pickard walked away from the tournament with just 11 goals allowed across seven appearances for Team Canada, boasting a 0.938 save percentage in all situations, chipping in with one shutout to boot. He collected five wins and just one loss outside of the gold medal game, standing in the crease for just under three quarters of Canada’s performances during the tournament.For Team Canada, a silver medal is a bit of a letdown after back-to-back golds. For Pickard, though, finishing second in the international tournament is a major bright spot in a miserable year.
Take that for what it is, and the fact that Canada can put together a pretty solid team. Also consider that he was behind a team that had never played together and these tournaments can look like an all offense, no system game of shinny. Those tend to make goaltenders numbers a little worse, and it wasn’t the case here.
Additionally, Pickard is a 25 year old at the prime of his career, who looks like at the very least he’s a capable NHL backup. I can see why the Golden Knights would want to swing for the fences with Malcolm Subban, especially with Oscar Dansk in the pipeline as well, but what they’d be giving up with Pickard is definitely a potential upgrade over what the Leafs have in their system.
I’m not going to say that Calvin Pickard will be or is better than Frederik Andersen, just that when you look at the numbers Pickard and Andersen align a lot more closely than Pickard aligns with either Sparks or McElhinney.
Conclusion
It’s good that the Leafs are upgrading over McElhinney, even if we have to wait a little before that happens. It looks like the Marlies crease has become quite crowded, but with McElhinney on the backend of his career I’d expect him to get the fewest reps until injuries or Solar Bears happen. Right now I’d suggest being excited about a trade that saw the Leafs add a NHL calibre goaltender for pennies on the dollar.
Recent articles from Jon Steitzer
