Boo Varlamov

**Starstruck** · November 4, 2015, 12:29 PM

OK, I am getting really irritated with Varly. Start him - shelled. Sit him - shines.

I am in a keeper league
G, A, .5 +-, .1 hits, .1 blocks
2W, -1L, -1GA, .1 SV, 4SO

Team is
Stamkos/Brassard/Carter/Gaudreau
Zuccarello/Lee/Palat
Johansen/Wheeler/MacKinnon
Carlson/Byfuglien/Weber/Niskanen/Suter
Price/Holtby
Bench: Faulk/Galchenyuk/Stastny/Eberle/Anderson/Varlamov

Nick Foligno, Matt Duchene and Tomas Tatar are all free agents. I am also intrigued by Andrei Vasilevskiy. Should I pull the trigger on any of these or stay patient? I'm currently 40 points back of 1st.

**Kofax** · November 4, 2015, 12:41 PM

Meh. Never been a fan of the guy. Outside of his one great year, he's been average over a full season.

**Bazz** · November 4, 2015, 12:43 PM

That team is NOT good, they've lost Stats and ROR which seem to be good possession driving Cs. That will lead to suckage if they are not properly replaced.

**Bass56** · November 4, 2015, 1:16 PM

He is a good goalie, not an elite one. He can be pegged in the top-15 and sit anywhere from 10-15 IMO. With that in mind, he is not playing very well this year and his team is all over the place. I do think things will settle in for him and the team before Christmas, but don't expect him to get a 1.90 GAA and a .935 SV% going forward... I'm thinking something in the 2.40-2.45 GAA with a .913-.918 SV% and a couple of SO is something to expect when the year will be over.

**P-Giddy** · November 4, 2015, 4:51 PM

His elite season was an outlier. Otherwise, he's been a slightly above average 'tender. Without ROR and Stastny, Colorado is terrible, and I don't see that changing any time soon (their only blue-chip prospect is Rantanen and no quality FA will want to wait that long for a chance at the Cup).

In other words, I think you should jump ship and drop him for Foligno or Tatar.

**Bass56** · November 4, 2015, 5:37 PM

Originally Posted by Bazz

That team is NOT good, they've lost Stats and ROR which seem to be good possession driving Cs. That will lead to suckage if they are not properly replaced.

Originally Posted by P-Giddy

His elite season was an outlier. Otherwise, he's been a slightly above average 'tender. Without ROR and Stastny, Colorado is terrible, and I don't see that changing any time soon (their only blue-chip prospect is Rantanen and no quality FA will want to wait that long for a chance at the Cup).

In other words, I think you should jump ship and drop him for Foligno or Tatar.

Keep in mind guys, the've lost both ROR and Stastny but MacKinnon has finally emerged as a star and Landeskog is getting better and better. I still think there is a difference between a less experienced MacK + Landeskog combined with Stast and ROR vs the former 2 studs with more experience and no PS or ROR, but that difference is not what makes the team a great one vs a terrible one.

All the team needs is to keep growing that core (eventually replacing an aging Iggy and Tanguay) while adding a solid D-man and they could be a contending team sooner than later IMO. Duchene is the real enigma here... If the kid is able to turn around his game (and I think he's not far from getting that spark of confidence back), he can really be a key component of their success going forward IMO.

**Starstruck** · November 4, 2015, 6:08 PM

Alright, so pitching him seems to be the way to go. Replace him in net vs. Foligno/Tatar? I have one vote for skaters...

**Starstruck** · November 4, 2015, 6:11 PM

I hate having to guess whether good Varly will show up or bad Varly. I should also point out, coincidentally, that ROR is a FA.

**metaldude26** · November 4, 2015, 6:40 PM

It hasn't showed up yet this season but Varlamov's Home/Road splits are pretty stark. He has a career 82-61 record with a 2.31 GAA and .923 Save% on home ice vs. a 57-69 record with 2.87 GAA and .911 Save% on the road. So there's still value in spot starting Varlamov at home against weak opponents but you might find more use out of Tomas Tatar, especially with Pavel Datsyuk returning soon.

**rangerfan2430** · November 4, 2015, 10:51 PM

I'd grab Tatar for Varly because you seem set in goal without him. Price, Holtby, and Anderson sound like a good three to me

**keytolife** · November 5, 2015, 4:02 AM

Just make sure to ask Bondon when to start him and do the opposite of what he tells you. He will be pure gold.

**Starstruck** · November 16, 2015, 10:35 PM

Checking back in. Managed to hold on to Varly long enough to have him get injured AND miss the train on Berra. Boo. Grabbed Tatar, passed on Foligno (yay). Free agents now include Monahan, Foligno, Hudler, Saad, Jenner, Hansen, Nielsen. Am intrigued by Rickard Rakell. Also a couple of backups out there in Raanta, Reimer, Howard* and Markstrom. When Varvar comes back, is his value now toast? Is it time to put him to bed with the fishes?