Going to keep it simple. Keeper league. Goalie categories are Wins, GAA and Sv%. Who would you want going forward? Harding rumors show him \"maybe\" going to another team (Oilers?) and Lehtonen looks decent but comes with his own questions.
Thanks for your opinions!
Right now it\'s impossible not to favour Lehtonen. He is a legit starting goaltender and has as much if not more talent than Harding. He just has to stay healthy to prove it. Harding is still stuck behind Backstrom and until that changes (and as much as I\'d like to, you can\'t assume it will) then you have to favour Lehtonen who is a current starter. They are both young and talented, with question marks about whether they can start but right now Lehtonen just has better odds.
Just for some context, I love Harding and I ****ing hate Lehtonen but it breaks down pretty simply to me.
I posted somewhere on here a few weeks ago about Harding and how I feel too much time has passed between his first season in the league and this very moment where he hasn\'t seen enough playing time or received enough exposure to become a legitimate #1 goalie in this league...even though he\'s good enough and SHOULD get the chance.
Kari Lehtonen on the other hand is going to be a #1 in ATL or wherevever he is. And if you paid attention to his play last season, it was by far the best of his career...and he wasn\'t nearly as injury prone, either. It was a lot of fun watching him.
I remember at the beginning of the season my BOLD prediction was Lehtonen winning 40 games. HA HAHAAHA. :lol:
Not the grand master of keeper leagues by any means, but I don\'t know of any reason why Harding would be more appealing than Lehtonen...
In an effort to bring this question some clarity, it\'s a difficult equation. Which goaltender has the most immediate upside?
It\'s not a question of who is the better goalie, it\'s who is going to play. The answer of course is the goaltender that plays 60 games this coming year...
Lehtonen - on the assumption that he\'s healthy, playing 60 games, would struggle to find 30 wins with 2 or 3 shutouts. His save percentage would be in the .910 to .915 window.
Harding - on a defensively based team playing 60 games might break the 30 win level, probably .915 to .920 with a 5SO. Harding on a run and gun team, 30 wins, .908 to .912, not so many shutouts.
Both are good tenders. A healthy Lehtonen could contend as one of the top 5 goaltenders in the world. He\'s certainly considered a band aid boy at this point in time. Bad groins are a terrible thing for goaltenders. They don\'t ever really get better. Harding doesn\'t rise as high, more along the lines of Cam Ward/Ryan Miller for his upside. He\'s been scratched up enough too, for the limited playing time he has had.
So, in your opinion, which one plays 60 games next year? That\'s the one to pick!
Harding vs Lehtonen
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