What do Hurricanes, Sabres do about three-way goalie tandems?
Sometimes, having too much talent can end up being a problem.
The Carolina Hurricanes and Buffalo Sabres find themselves in predicaments thanks to how they’ve approached their goaltending situations. The Hurricanes currently have the trio of Frederik Andersen, Pyotr Kochetkov and Brandon Bussi on their roster, while Alex Lyon, Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen and Colten Ellis man the net in Buffalo.
Having three NHL-ready goaltenders can be a luxury for some teams. For the Canes, Bussi’s incredible hot streak has moved them toward the top of the Metropolitan Division. However, if some guys don’t get enough starts, they can begin to fall out of rhythm and not be up to par when their name is called.
On Wednesday’s edition of Daily Faceoff LIVE, Carter Hutton explains what both Carolina and Buffalo should do in their respective situations.
Carter Hutton: We talk about the Carolina Hurricanes and where they’re at. Then, you look at Freddy Andersen, and for how good he’s been, it’s been that playoff woes through his career and then staying healthy. Kochetkov’s been awesome, but you can’t ignore the fact that Brandon Bussi is 9-1. He’s a waiver pickup. He finds ways to win games, and that is what you need on a team that doesn’t really generate a ton of offense come playoff time. This is a team that’s going to grind you down. But if you can get consistent goaltending from [Bussi], he becomes a guy that you really want to keep around.
As for Buffalo, it’s not as concerning in my opinion because at the end of the day, if you lose Ellis and you lose Lyon, you’re still a long way away from being a winning team, right? Those guys are replaceable in that sense. I think UPL still has upside. He’s still pretty young if he isn’t a trade target.
There is some tough decisions to go around. And what I will tell you, as a goalie who’s been in a three-unit cycle, it sucks. You want your minutes. You want to play. All of a sudden, you go from playing one game and next thing you know, in practice, you’re sharing the net with a guy and you can barely get your reps in. So it is tricky having the three-goalie carousel in the NHL.
You can watch the full segment and entire episode here…