Niittymaki Signs With San Jose, Leaves us Wondering

Leaving better goaltending potential on the open market, San Jose locked up goaltender Antero Niittymaki for two years at $2-million a piece.  Last season with Tampa Bay, Niittymaki posted a 21-18-5 record and 2.87 GAA while mostly splitting time with Mike Smith.

Digging a little deeper, though, we see that Niittymaki closed out the season with a 5-8 record and 3.69 GAA leaving many questions surrounding his ability to be the top goaltender for an entire season and playoff run.  In fact, Niittymaki has never finished a season (post-All Star / Olympic break) with a sub-3.00 GAA.

Trends like that leave Nittymaki a solid sell high option in fantasy circles but owners should look at him with an Antti Niemi-like approach – plenty of wins and shutouts but the off nights will be painful.