Was the Marc-Andre Fleury contract a mistake? In August 2010, that was a legitimate query. And by October 2010, if you asked that question, you probably saw a lot of people nodding vigorously. But now?
With Nashville today signing 29-year-old Pekka Rinne to a 7 year, $49 million deal, it's a good time to take stock of Fleury's value. Rinne is top notch, but $7 million a year rockets him to the top of goalie cap hits and seems a bit rich. NHL contracts are a moving target - what looks like a bad deal today can look terrific tomorrow. Still, we can learn a lot from looking at these cap hit numbers (which don't include the Rinne deal), courtesy of Capgeek.com.
As of today, there are 11 goalies with a higher cap hit than Fleury. Three of them have won a Stanley Cup, but two of those Cup winners are aging warriors Brodeur and Thomas, and one of them has been irrevocably scarred by an Evgeni Malkin blind backhander, top shelf, short side. Salary-wise, Marc-Andre Fleury is in Jonas Hiller territory, and if you're asking who among the top 10 on this list we'd take ahead of Fleury, you'll be waiting for some time, because we've already walked away. What a steal.
Looks like Staal and Letang may suit up tonight. Somebody tell Joe Thornton he won't see anything soft tonight unless he asks to touch Chris Kunitz's hands. LGP.
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