Monday Mailbag – What happens to Al Montoya and Laurent Brossoit

Whether you’re killing company time or sitting on your couch in your favourite Connor McDavid PJs, this week’s mailbag is here to help you get through a little part of your Monday. I don’t care whether you’re killing company time or killing time until it’s socially acceptable to start drinking, I’m just happy you’re here and for that I thank you. If you have a question for the mailbag, you can email me or hit me up on Twitter.  Until then, I present another edition of the Mailbag.

I’d expect him to do the job thinking about the big picture. Last summer he didn’t add vets and move out young players, so if he did this summer then he is clearly panicking and not following his plan, or what I perceived as his plan, last summer.

How much of an asset is Puljujarvi? Do we know yet? What I’d like to see is for Chiarelli to do everything he can to ensure this team has a chance to win a Stanley Cup or two during Connor McDavid’s prime years — the next 5-7 seasons. I don’t care what his motivation is, as long as that’s his focus. When you have a generational player you’d best do everything you can to take your best shot during his prime years. After that? Whatever.

I am absolutely worried about that. He had a full year with lots of cap space to plan for the future and crapped his pants. What will he do with his job on the line, no space, and a lineup full of holes? I can’t believe he still has a job.

It’s a concern for sure. If they miss the playoffs again, he’s definitely gone. It’s a curious position but that’s the direction they’ve chosen. He’s going to move assets for immediate help and Oilers fans should be worried given his track record.

I’m upset that we’re even in this position right now where Pete might have to do something to try save his job. But I think there is reason to be concerned. At the same time though, I too am leaning towards doing what’s necessary to allow us to win NOW. People are going to start burning this city down if we miss another post-season.

I guess we’ll see what happens with this year’s first round pick, right? The last time Chiarelli moved a first round pick it didn’t really work out so well so I’m not exactly looking forward to him potentially doing it again. Personally, I think he’s in ‘save job’ mode and it will start with trading this year’s first as a package for an established player with varying levels of success and outrage being the result.

Vegas is an oddity. You never get to pick players from another team and give up nothing. But you could say, giving players opportunity is good. However, the players have to be ready and able to take advantage of it.

Washington stayed the course. They didn’t make major changes last summer despite another second round exit. Stick with the plan.

Tampa Bay. Draft and develop properly and it will pay dividends for many years.

Winnipeg. Be patient. Remember last summer most of us felt the Jets should have moved out their GM and coach. They didn’t.

They can learn that there’s more than one way to be successful in terms of player personnel and on-ice strategy — the remaining teams are not carbon copies of each other. Vegas a team with something to prove. Winnipeg stuck with staff from a team that underachieved a year ago. There are bits and pieces that can be taken from each team and applied to what best fits here.

That a manager’s job is to collect as many good players as possible, not constantly switch them out because this is “X player’s team now”. The Jets may have given up many opportunities to make trades, but they held onto guys and forced good players into third line roles because they had better ones come up to the second line. They didn’t ditch those former second liners, they moved them down.

Winnipeg has drafted and developed with very few trades or poor signings. Patience has paid off for them. Washington shows that your best team doesn’t always make it. This Capitals team is arguably worse than a lot of their previous teams. We can consider Vegas a good team at this point, but also acknowledge a hot goalie helps a lot. There’s a lot of ways to win, which is good news for the Oilers.

That street parties in Winnipeg are the coolest things ever and we definitely have to make that happen next time we’re in!

Don’t lose so much. Suck less. Also, don’t trade away your talent before they’ve developed (Jets). Put it all on black!

Brossoit is a UFA…I don’t see him returning. Montoya will come to camp and compete for a job. He likely will be waived and sent to minors. Maybe traded, if someone suffers an injury to their backup goalie.

They’re gone. Montoya has a year left on his contract. Brossoit is a UFA. Not a matter of if but when.

Laurent Brossoit will be a firefighter within two years of this post and Al Montoya will roam around the NHL as a backup again, eventually retiring to be a colour commentator for Seattle.

Montoya gets traded or ends up in Bakersfield. Brossoit isn’t signed.

It would be odd to have them both in Bakersfield so I’m assuming one of them may get traded? I suppose they could both split the games in the AHL but I don’t think it makes sense to have one of two developing goalies just riding the bench all season long in Bakersfield.

I’ve heard that Brossoit won’t be back and I don’t think Al Montoya has any chance to be in Edmonton either (injuries aside). I bet Chia tries to move him for at least the fourth round pick he gave up to get him (probably won’t happen), or he’ll be in Bakersfield.

Jets in six. They are really good. I’ve bet against Vegas all playoffs — why stop now? Capitals in six. A bit of an upset pick. I’m picking with my heart a bit here. I’ve always been a huge Ovechkin fan, so I’d like to see him in the Cup Final.

Jets beat Golden Knights in six. Byfuglien. Capitals beat the Lightning in six. Might be Ovechkin’s best and last shot at a Cup.

I think Ovie finally makes it to a Cup Final. The Jets dominate the Knights.

It’s hard to bet against Vegas but I don’t think they stack up well against Winnipeg’s top players. Tampa is more of a threat than Washington so I’m expecting a Jets-Lighting Stanley Cup.

I’m 100% torn for the West final. I have no idea who to choose between the two. Every time you think Vegas is going to slip up, they pull through, so it’s extremely tough to predict. I’m going WPG in six.

On the other side, it will be another close series. I think the Caps have momentum like they’ve never had before and they’ll take it in six games.

Jets in seven because the mayor of Winnipeg promised to build them an airport if they win a Stanley Cup. Washington in six.

Was an odd, strange, immature decision. I don’t think it had anything to do with the Bruins losing. Tampa Bay was better. Good for him to apologize. Not much more needs to happen. Too often everyone wants to punish people for a bad decision. He didn’t hurt anyone, other than himself. In the grand scheme of the NHL I don’t think the lick was really that big of a deal. Gross, sure, but it was one second. No damage, other than to his own reputation.

It was stupid. Made himself look like a tool.

I think it’s disgusting and no different than spitting in someone’s face. He should have been suspended one game the first time he did it and 10 games the second time he did it. Also, I would have been fine if he had been two-handed over the head after it happened. But that’s me.

Kind of gross. Kind of funny. I like star players showing personality but I’m not sure this is what I expected.

Why the NHL took out the gross misconduct rule makes no sense to me. The licking has no part in this game and I wish he would have faced some sort of discipline for it. It’s stupid. It honestly made me happy that the Bruins got bumped, and anything said by Marchand shouldn’t be taken seriously.

 

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