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Leafs favourites to sign goalie Mantas Armalis?

H

Heroic Shrimp

Active member
I guess somebody ought to post it...

Maple Leafs favourites to land ?model? goalie Mantas Armalis

The Toronto Maple Leafs are the frontrunners to land Lithuanian goaltender Mantas Armalis, according to Sportsnet?s Elliotte Friedman.

Armalis has spent the last two years with Djurgardens in the Swedish league where he has shared the crease with former Maple Leafs goalie Mikael Tellqvist. The 23-year-old was 16-16 with a 2.42 goals-against average, .918 save percentage and two shutouts in 34 appearances this season.

In addition to his hockey career, Armalis has become known for moonlighting as a male runway model.
 
I doubt we'll be able to sign him given that I don't for a second believe this is a real person.
 
Nik the Trik said:
I doubt we'll be able to sign him given that I don't for a second believe this is a real person.
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The Leafs should have applied that rationale when they signed the Swedish rapping goalie.
 
(*sigh*)  Oh my!  When do they sign him? 💕  :D

880c09da-926d-4fb6-a8e0-47071d8a3670_zpstzv3t9ai.jpg


 
CarltonTheBear said:
His stats don't seem all that impressive. Gustavsson's were far better and we saw how that worked out.
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In fairness though, the Marlies are in the market for a heartbreaker after losing Nylander.

The only heart Gustavsson ever broke was his own.
 
Actually, Gustavsson fell short of the hype in the same way Stralman did. Both turned out to be decent NHLers, Stralman even better than that in fact.

As for the Lithuanuan guy, he really exists ... But so does Photoshop.
 
I went all the way to Sweden to see Djurgardens play but they started Tellqvist that night. Sadly I saw the Ghost of Leafs past rather than the Ghost of Leafs future.

I've seen him play a few games on TV. He didn't really stand out as anything exceptional.
 
Arn said:
I went all the way to Sweden to see Djurgardens play but they started Tellqvist that night. Sadly I saw the Ghost of Leafs past rather than the Ghost of Leafs future.

I've seen him play a few games on TV. He didn't really stand out as anything exceptional.
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Maybe he can "blue steel" the puck away from the net.
 
Bullfrog said:
Considering how bare the Leafs goaltending cupboard is, it certainly couldn't hurt.
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Yeah the Leafs seriously need some depth there, they probably have the shallowest organizational goalie depth in the league. So while this can't hurt I hope they have something else in mind too.

Alex Lyon might be the most coveted college free agent goalie right now. He's 23 years old, and has put up pretty great numbers the last 2 seasons (1.62 GAA, .939 Sv% last season. 1.59 GAA, .938 Sv% this season). Not exactly a huge goalie at 6'1" and 201 lbs, but to be honest bigger goalies putting up great numbers in these leagues always worries me a little (see last years big fish Matt O'Connor putting up a sparkling .892 Sv% in the AHL this season). There's a bit of a Leafs connection too as he was involved in their rookie orientation camp last summer.
 
CarltonTheBear said:
Alex Lyon might be the most coveted college free agent goalie right now. He's 23 years old, and has put up pretty great numbers the last 2 seasons (1.62 GAA, .939 Sv% last season. 1.59 GAA, .938 Sv% this season). Not exactly a huge goalie at 6'1" and 201 lbs, but to be honest bigger goalies putting up great numbers in these leagues always worries me a little (see last years big fish Matt O'Connor putting up a sparkling .892 Sv% in the AHL this season). There's a bit of a Leafs connection too as he was involved in their rookie orientation camp last summer.
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I imagine the Leafs have kept an eye on him/been in contact with him, as well. My guess is they'll be looking to add a couple UFA prospect type goalies to see if they can hit on something while they wait on some of the guys they'll draft over the next couple years. I also wouldn't be surprised to see a significant goalie prospect come over in a trade this summer.
 
bustaheims said:
I also wouldn't be surprised to see a significant goalie prospect come over in a trade this summer.
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With the news that teams can only protect 1 goalie in the expansion draft there definitely will be teams that look to trade a younger guy instead of losing him for nothing. Pittsburgh's Matt Murray or one of Winnipeg's non-Pavelec goalies would be the obvious targets there.
 
bustaheims said:
CarltonTheBear said:
Alex Lyon might be the most coveted college free agent goalie right now. He's 23 years old, and has put up pretty great numbers the last 2 seasons (1.62 GAA, .939 Sv% last season. 1.59 GAA, .938 Sv% this season). Not exactly a huge goalie at 6'1" and 201 lbs, but to be honest bigger goalies putting up great numbers in these leagues always worries me a little (see last years big fish Matt O'Connor putting up a sparkling .892 Sv% in the AHL this season). There's a bit of a Leafs connection too as he was involved in their rookie orientation camp last summer.
Click to expand...

I imagine the Leafs have kept an eye on him/been in contact with him, as well. My guess is they'll be looking to add a couple UFA prospect type goalies to see if they can hit on something while they wait on some of the guys they'll draft over the next couple years. I also wouldn't be surprised to see a significant goalie prospect come over in a trade this summer.
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I think a top pairing d-man prospect is more important right now.  That's the piece I'm hoping they add this summer...even if they draft him.

I think of goaltending these days as a final piece sort of thing. 
 
Frank E said:
I think of goaltending these days as a final piece sort of thing.
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This is the route I would take in a rebuild situation. Nab a primo-goalie too early in the build and it'd be much tougher to draft in the top 5.
 
Frank E said:
I think a top pairing d-man prospect is more important right now.  That's the piece I'm hoping they add this summer...even if they draft him.

I think of goaltending these days as a final piece sort of thing.
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Sure, but I don't see too many options for trading for a young top pairing D. They're just not available without sending similarly aged players with similar ceilings back. Teams always have/make room for high-end defence prospects. Any improvements to the top pairing will almost certainly have to come through the draft. Goalies are a different story. There's less roster spots available, and teams with established starters are going to be more willing to include high ceiling goalie prospects in moves. That doesn't mean those guys will be able to break into the NHL as starters right away, but having them in the system now means less of a scramble to find a potential starter 2 or 3 seasons from now.

I also think of goaltending as the final piece, but I also recognize how unpredictable young goalies are. Having a number moving through the system until one establishes themselves as an above average starter is just smart organizational planning.
 
CarltonTheBear said:
With the news that teams can only protect 1 goalie in the expansion draft there definitely will be teams that look to trade a younger guy instead of losing him for nothing. Pittsburgh's Matt Murray or one of Winnipeg's non-Pavelec goalies would be the obvious targets there.
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Yeah. If the league announces an expansion team this June, there could be a number of interesting options available out there.
 
Lets get Jame T Kirk Riemer back:
Reimer saved all 25 shots he faced in the Sharks' 3-0 win over the Arizona Coyotes. He is now 3-1-0 with two shutouts, a 1.26 GAA and .952 save pct. since coming over at the trade deadline.
 
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