The Hockey News Considers Markstrom And Demko 2 of the Best Goaltending Prospects In The World

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Nah, I wish though, that a big misconception introduced by EA sports. Once a player hits a thresh hold it doesn’t matter if they have a two way contract or the time of the year they are being assigned, they have to clear waivers. Markstrom has reached that thresh hold and would have to clear before being assigned to Utica. So we would have lost him this year without dealing a goalie.

The reason I bring up Lack is because at the exact age Markstrom currently is, he was named Canucks official backup with zero NHL games experience (less evidence). No one knew how that situations would unfold if Luongo would have happened to get hurt. Sure enough Luongo did get hurt in December and Lack ran with it. Everything turned out good. That’s why it’s probably not best to use Markstrom’s age/lack NHL success as a deterrent He’s farther along in terms of development as the guy he is replacing, when Lack was the same age. If anything Lack that should be more encouraging considering it took Lack two years to be considered a possible #1 Goalie in the league.

Bummer. But thanks for the info.

The situation in 12/13 was very different. We had a starter and a backup who we had made into a starter while pushing our starter to being the backup. We had 2 good goalies we could confidently move forward with. As it happened (for the love of hockey, let's not rehash that!), we traded Schneider and kept Luo, making Lack the next in line for the backup position. We simply dealt with the situation involving 2 starters and were still left with a competent starter who had years of high level goaltending left, we didn't choose Lack and name him the future of the franchise. But that is what we did with Markstrom when we traded Lack.

And to be fair to Benning, this was actually a more difficult situation because Miller doesn't provide the long-term security Luo did and Lack is certainly no where near as proven or talented as Schneider was. Whereas with Luo and Schneids there really wasn't a bad choice, this time maybe there really wasn't a good one because while we can wish all we all, none of them actually provide any real security. It's a role of the dice with any combination of these goalies. Benning decided to plan on mediocre and hope for great down the line. I would have preferred we jumped in with both feet and ran with our young guys, having them continue to work with our goalie coaches and develop more. We could have kept Lack's starts reasonable so as not to over tax him while allowing Markstrom more NHL experience. And we could have used the money we saved to get them more defensive help to support them. If it turned out to be a failed experiment, we could have let Lack go after next season and brought in an experienced starter. As it stands, we're stuck with an aging, declining and overpriced goalie for another 2 years and a backup who is not as developed as the guy we traded and yet already costs us more.

Whatever Benning did was a roll of the dice. He picked which combination to place his bet on. It wasn't my choice but either way here's hoping Lady Luck loves Canucks hockey.

[Nino]

The fact is, goalie development is far too flunctuating to be able to tell where a guy will end up. Confidence, environment and style in relativity to a team has a huge factor in how a goalie ends up the way they do. There's several examples of goalies that turned into NHL goalies, whether in the backup/starter capacity that never should have ended up there, ala Darling, Rinne, etc. and 'surefire' goalies turning into duds. I believe goalie coaches play a huge part in this, which is why I think Rollie is so important to the Canucks.

I think the bottom line s that they didn't see lack as our future number one and were willing to roll the dice because demko is just around the corner. We have a vet to hold the fort and TWO top rated prospects (chances are one of the two will work out) I hardly think Benning made the wrong choice.

[riley57]

Well, if we wanted to get any free agents next year we needed to move Lack. If we traded Miller and Markstrom didn't play up to snuff we either show Lack the money or have a Markstrom - (veteran back-up) tandem. Yikes. And it would bring back our goaltending graveyard that we had before Luongo, and make us have to rush Demko most likely hurting his future. We'd probably have to sign Lack to a Miller deal (Somewhere around $4.5-6.0) with term, and risk creating a logjam for Demko. Instead we have a succession plan; develop Markstrom into a mediocre starter over the two years we have Miller, then have him be the starter for Demko, who will usurp him subsequently in the first couple years that Markstrom's the starter. That's probably the scenario we're looking at, with some sort of veteran back-up jammed in the middle of that. Who knows, we might have Markstrom turn out into a superstar then have a Luongo-Schneider situation/Demko not working out and having Markstrom our starter for the forseeable future. And the opposite might happen as well, Markstrom not turning out, him getting shipped out, us signing/trading for a mediocre starter and bridging the gap for Demko.

[Nino]

Well, if we wanted to get any free agents next year we needed to move Lack. If we traded Miller and Markstrom didn't play up to snuff we either show Lack the money or have a Markstrom - (veteran back-up) tandem. Yikes. And it would bring back our goaltending graveyard that we had before Luongo, and make us have to rush Demko most likely hurting his future. We'd probably have to sign Lack to a Miller deal (Somewhere around $4.5-6.0) with term, and risk creating a logjam for Demko. Instead we have a succession plan; develop Markstrom into a mediocre starter over the two years we have Miller, then have him be the starter for Demko, who will usurp him subsequently in the first couple years that Markstrom's the starter. That's probably the scenario we're looking at, with some sort of veteran back-up jammed in the middle of that. Who knows, we might have Markstrom turn out into a superstar then have a Luongo-Schneider situation/Demko not working out and having Markstrom our starter for the forseeable future. And the opposite might happen as well, Markstrom not turning out, him getting shipped out, us signing/trading for a mediocre starter and bridging the gap for Demko.

Right, lots of options with the hand we have now, I like it.

[awalk]

CDC in a nutshell...

Hockey News praises our goalie prospects? All hail the Hockey News, they're respected!

Numerous outlets and analysts criticize Benning? Idiots! how do they have jobs!

Maybe cause...you're reading posts by...different people

[Nino]

Maybe cause...you're reading posts by...different people

Lol, no kidding.

[awalk]

Lol, no kidding.

is it October yet?

[ForsbergTheGreat]

Bummer. But thanks for the info.

The situation in 12/13 was very not much different. We had a starter and a backup who we had made into a starter while pushing our starter to being the backup. We had 2 good goalies we could confidently move forward with. As it happened (for the love of hockey, let's not rehash that!), we traded Schneider Lack and kept Luo Miller making Lack Markstrom the next in line for the backup position. We simply dealt with the situation involving 2 starters and were still left with a competent starter who had years of high level goaltending left,

.

As far as far as long term security. When we dealt Cory, Luongo was heading into that season turning 35. Miller just turned 35 less than a month ago. The only long term security was we had luongo locked up with his ridiculous contract.

Here's the thing if Markstrom doesn't turn out. There are plenty of comparables to Lack pick up through free agency, we did sign miller through UFA. But that is worst case scenario.

Worst case sincere with Lack/Markstrom combo is what if Lack falter under the pressure of being number 1. and then we destroy his confidents and have to ride him and Markstrom to the ground.

Signing a D isn't that simple. To get someone worth actually improving our team we'd have to give up high cap space and likely long term. This would have an effect on the development of our younger players like removing opportunity for corrado.

All things considered moving lack was the best option

[qwijibo]

InGoal magazine just rated the top 50 goaltending prospects. They have Demko at 12 and Markstrom didn't qualify based on their criteria.

With the amount of amateur and professional scouting available in this modern age of sports, any list of the best prospects will vary depending who is making the list. Based on a collection of those different opinions and scouting work from our staff, InGoal has created a power ranking for the next generation of up-and-coming NHL goaltenders.

Factors like age, talent ceiling, current development situation, reputation, and how close they are to being NHL-ready were all taken under consideration when making this list. It may not be definitive, but it will hopefully offer a decent idea of each organizations future goaltending situation.

Younger, recently-drafted goalies may not rank as high on the list because are still very early in their development, and it is difficult to compare them to prospects that have already turned pro. Some have very high ceilings and are ranked appropriately, but others may need to develop for a few more years before they begin to climb up the list.

The stipulations to qualify as a prospect for the purpose of this list are:

1) Must be 25 years old or younger,

2) Have only played 10 games or less in the NHL, and

3) Must be drafted or signed by a professional club.

If a goaltender is missing from the list, check to make sure they qualify based on those rules. Unfortunately, promising goalies like John Gibson of the Anaheim Ducks, Andrei Vasilevskiy of the Tampa Bay Lightning, and Petr Mrazek of the Detroit Red Wings do not qualify because they all surpassed the 10 NHL game limit.

Undrafted and unsigned goaltenders (see: Ken Appleby) also do not qualify for this list. When Alex Lyon chooses to leave Yale University, he will likely cause another Matt OConnor-like bidding war. He would have easily made this list, but since he was not drafted and is currently not under contract by a professional team, he does not qualify.

With those factors in mind, here is the list of the current top 50 NHL goaltending prospects:

Vancouver_Canucks12. Thatcher Demko

2nd round, 36th overall in 2014 19 years old

35 GP, 2.19 GAA, .925 SV%, 19-13-3 (Boston College Hockey East, NCAA)

Even with limited rotation in his hip, Demko was able to put up some solid numbers with Boston College in 2014-2015 and at the World Juniors. The issues in his hip are not seen as serious, but it was enough to cause him discomfort all year long. All eyes will be on him to see how much he improves this upcoming season now that he has had surgery and is completely healthy. The Canucks do not plan on rushing him along, so fans can hold off setting a date for his NHL arrival. For a raw-but-talented goaltender like that, taking the slow route is clearly the best idea. His work with Canucks goaltending consultant Dan Cloutier is already paying dividends for his technical game.

[Bruce Boudreau]

When Miller leaves in 2 years it will be Markstroms time to step in and be a good 50-60 game starter. Demko is minimum still 5 years away from being NHL ready.

[Bruce Boudreau]

When Miller leaves in 2 years it will be Markstroms time to step in and be a good 50-60 game starter. Demko is minimum still 5 years away from being NHL ready. Maybe they trade one for a #1 potential C or D.

[cuporbust]

Guess that means they will both be gone soon

[Nave]

Sure, the Lack of return was disappointing, but I remember when people said Markstrom was the best goalie not in the nhl, and he's even better now. As the Hockey News pointed out, he was "part of the Luongo trade [and] was shocked by the deal, which was magnified by the off-season signing of Ryan Miller. [but] to his credit" he honed his game with Rollie Melanson, and had his best season

[MoneypuckOverlord]

pretty accurate.

Markstrom is one of, if not the best Goalie in the AHL the last 2 years.

Demko is the best goalie in College.