Montreal Canadiens Rumoured To Be Interested In Keith Kinkaid
The Montreal Canadiens have been very busy during the free agent negotiating window. The most recent rumour has them meeting with goaltender Keith Kinkaid.
The Montreal Canadiens have been taking advantage of the free agent negotiating period. They have met with big names like Matt Duchene, Anders Lee and even Toronto Maple Leafs restricted free agent Mitch Marner.
The most recent chatter has them meeting with unrestricted free agent goaltender Keith Kinkaid. The American netminder will turn 30 this summer and is not coming off his best season. He was dealt to the Columbus Blue Jackets at the trade deadline for a 5th round draft pick.
Before this season, he was a very capable and dependable backup goaltender. He spent the four previous seasons proving to be a very solid number two option behind starter Cory Schneider. Kinkaid posted save percentages between .904 and .916 each of those four seasons and a goals against average from 2.59 to 2.81.
A long story short, he was an exceptional backup goaltender for the Devils from 2014-18. However, his 2018-19 season was abysmal. He had a 3.36 GAA with a .891 SV% in 41 games. He never suited up for the Blue Jackets following his trade deadline trade.
Keith Kinkaid met with @CanadiensMTL today.
— Eric Engels (@EricEngels) June 28, 2019
The numbers would suggest Kinkaid struggled the season. His games played numbers would also suggest he was overworked. His 41 games played before the trade deadline were a career high for any full season in his career. Perhaps being handed the starter’s job played a role in his decreased effectiveness this season.
If the Montreal Canadiens sign him, he certainly won’t be playing 41 games. He might play 14, which is the number of back to back sets of games that Habs have next season.
The Habs do need a reliable backup goaltender as Antti Niemi was awful for them last season and quite possibly cost them a playoff spot with his play. Even Carey Price needs a dependable understudy to fill in from time to time. They need someone who can handle 14-20 starts and just be good, not fantastic.
That’s exactly what Kinkaid was for four seasons before the New Jersey Devils tried to make him a starter this year. He had a few rough stretches when he was asked to play every game, but he wouldn’t have to deal with that workload as Price’s backup.
If Kinkaid can get back to the player he was in his first four NHL seasons, he would be a perfect fit for the Canadiens. He would definitely be worth bringing in on a one year contract. Coming off a down season, he won’t be expecting a multi-year pact so there is very little risk involved with Kinkaid.
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And hey, he can’t be worse than Niemi was last season, can he?