It’s a wild time to cover the Vancouver Canucks’ crease, but what else is new? That’s par for the course in this city.

In the span of a week, we’ve been exposed to every possible outcome for the Canucks net. One day Canucks general manager Jim Benning is setting the stage for a reunion with Ryan Miller, and the next he’s telling TSN’s Pierre LeBrun that Jacob Markstrom will be their number one goalie next season. A day later, News 1130’s Rick Dhaliwal is telling us there’s no commitment from either side to strike a Miller contract extension, and Benning is clarifying his comments to The Province’s Ben Kuzma and suggesting Markstrom will “eventually” be their starter.

Some of these ideas work better than others for the nominally rebuilding Canucks. I remain unconvinced that any combination of the four notions is what’s best for the Canucks’ crease with all the options available to them, though.

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Bringing Miller back for another season or two is easy — convenient, even. There’s a comfort factor there that I’m sure the Canucks value immensely, and there’s no arguing with the work he put in last season. He’s still a 37-year-old goaltender, and that means he comes with a significant risk of breaking down as the season wears on. There aren’t many goalies in the NHL in any capacity beyond 35-years-old, and with good reason.

as #Canucks close in on Miller, remember 3 goalies aged 36+ played in #NHL this past season. One was Carolina's equipment manager pic.twitter.com/RdQtSiLFgw — Jeff Paterson (@patersonjeff) May 31, 2017

As for Markstrom, Vancouver hitched their fortunes to his waggon the moment they put pen to paper on his three-year contract extension at $11-million. That’s not top dollar for a goaltender, but it’s not an insignificant amount either. The Canucks have to do everything in their power to get a sound return on that investment. That means, at the very least, giving him an opportunity to take the starting job and run with it.

There are many reasons to believe Markstrom, who will turn 28-years-old next season, doesn’t have it in him to grow beyond a backup’s role. The problem is Benning’s already elevated him from a backup’s tax bracket.

If Jacob Markstrom isn’t a number one goaltender now, he likely never will be https://t.co/BtkzMWDgrm pic.twitter.com/8kETza8Of2 — Pass it to Bulis (@passittobulis) May 31, 2017

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So, for argument’s sake, let’s imagine the Canucks’ hands are tied with Markstrom — if for no other reason than, well, they are. They’ve no such restrictions with Miller. It doesn’t sound like the Canucks have given much thought to a future in their crease that doesn’t involve Miller though so let’s help them out. Here are some Miller alternatives to work in tandem with Markstrom.

Darcy Kuemper

There was a time when Darcy Kuemper was the goalie of the future for the Minnesota Wild. Hell, it wasn’t that long ago. Kuemper took the starting job to finish the 2013-14 season and put together a solid six playoff games for the Wild to top it all off.

The expectation was Kuemper would take the reins in Minnesota for the 2014-15 season and never look back. That fell apart by November of that season, and the Wild resorted to acquiring Devan Dubnyk from the Arizona Coyotes, effectively closing the door for Kuemper to regain the starting job.

Kuemper’s been something of a mixed bag since. He returned to form in the 2015-16 season with a .915 save percentage but regressed significantly to a .902 mark this season. Now the Wild seem poised to let him test unrestricted free agency.

If the Canucks can get the best out of Kuemper, he could prove a cost-effective backup with perhaps even middling value at the trade deadline. If you can find a player with that billing in free agency, that’s worth the price of admission.

Jonathan Bernier

When we think of Jonathan Bernier, we often get caught up in all his shortcomings without giving him credit for the sparse highlights of his career. We think of the Toronto Maple Leafs collapse in the 2014-15 season or the Anaheim Ducks post-season falling apart short weeks ago at his hands.

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What gets lost in the bigger picture is that Bernier’s still a reasonable bet to perform at the lowest threshold for a backup goaltender and occasionally far better. At his worst, Bernier’s sported a .908 save percentage in a season with ten or more games played. At Bernier’s best, he rocked a cool .923 behind one of the league’s most porous teams in a starting role in the world’s biggest hockey market.

Bernier’s career is more of a mixed bag than people give credit. Sometimes he’s a solid starting goaltender and others a serviceable backup. In the last four seasons, Bernier’s .923 five-on-five save percentage ranks 44th among qualifying goaltenders — Miller ranks 43rd.

If the Canucks want to swing for the fences, Bernier is a sound bet. He’s an unrestricted free agent and likely to come with a far cheaper contract than the two-year $8.3-million deal he just finished. At the very worst, he’s a solid netminder that can work in tandem with Markstrom.

Brian Elliott

As the Calgary Flames found out this season, Brian Elliott might not be the starting goaltender he often looked like he could be in St. Louis. It’s possible that Elliott, 32, is at his best in a tandem role, as he was for so much of his time in St. Louis, and that’s just not going to change at this stage of his career.

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That works just fine for the Canucks. If they signed Elliott, an unrestricted free agent, that’s all they would ever need from him. If Elliott can lighten the load on Markstrom and shine as the 1B in a tandem role with the Canucks, they’ve created a tradeable asset out of free agency and shored up their goaltending up to that point. It’s a win-win.

Elliott might not have had the best season in Calgary, but he’s still a hell of a goaltender. In the last four seasons, Elliott’s .928 save percentage at five-on-five is the 23rd ranked mark in the entire league. Imagine having that as an insurance policy.





