Martin Biron's injury proves the weakness of depth in net

Marty Biron is out for the season with a broken collarbone after taking a shot during practice yesterday, but that is just the start of the bad news. Because the trade deadline has passed just yesterday, the Rangers only hope is to pick up a netminder on waivers or deal with their AHL prospects. Biron has been excellent for the most part and is the first reliable backup that the Rangers have had in a decade. Marty posted an 8-6-0 record with a .923 sv% and a 2.13 GAA, which were actually better stats than starter Henrik Lundqvist.

The Rangers have called up Cameron Talbot from ECHL Greenville to take Biron's place. The first year pro has played well in limited action with both AHL Connecticut and Greenville. In 13 AHL games, he has posted an 8-3-2 record with a .919 sv% and a 2.42 GAA while in two ECHL games, Talbot went 1-0-1 with a 2.46 GAA a .921 sv%. He was sent down to Greenville in order to get playing time, as Chad Johnson and Dov Morris have taken over the goaltending duties in Connecticut. The lanky Talbot is 6'3" and weighs in at 185 lbs. Gordie Clark described him in the Rangers' 20 Prospects in 20 Days saying "he has size and the athleticism we like, and he was able to keep a very weak team competitive."

So all is well in Rangerland, right? No, as Henrik Lundqvist cannot start every game left in the regular season. Luckily for the Rangers, the team only plays back to back once in the month of March. Talbot may not be needed to start and with the team in such a heated playoff race he may not see the ice unless Henrik has a terrible game (which is plausible) or something worse happens. Also, Henrik has had battles with fatigue before. Having him start every game left in the regular season may tire him out for the playoffs which is where he is needed most.

This goes to show that Glen Sather and Gordie Clark must address their weak depth in net. There is no NHL-ready talent in the AHL and their aren't any blue-chip prospects coming through the pipelines. Aside from Talbot, the Rangers are relying on the potential of Chad Johnson and OHLer Scott Stajcer to provide stability in the crease.

According to HockeysFuture's analysis, Johnson needs to work on his strength. He has a good glove hand and plays his angles well. He is a smart and hard-working player that has a professional attitude to his game. That being said, his potential is that of a 1A or journeyman goaltender, something such as Martin Biron. Johnson has taken the brunt of the starts for the Whale, playing in 40 games and posting 16 wins. This can be attributed to the atrocious start for the AHL team, as before making several moves and changing their name to the Whale (naturally, of course), the team had trouble playing defense and winning games. He has also posted pedestrian numbers with a .901 sv% and 2.72 GAA. He is a restricted free agent this summer, but with the lack of prospects and potential NHLers, he should be retained.

Stajcer, who turns 20 in June, is in his fourth OHL season. He is trying to garner a contract from the Rangers and if he is signed, he should start at the AHL level in 2011-12. He has faced injury after his best career start. With the Owen Sound Attack, Stajcer had posted a 10-3-0 record to start the year. He had a .901 sv% and a 2.91 GAA before suffering a hip injury. He has been skating in full equipment as recently as February 25th, and is poised to come back later in the season. Before this year, Stajcer has had a career GAA above 3.00 and a sv% of .884. Fighting for a contract this season, he has shown improved play. It remains to be seen if Stajcer can continue to improve and have a shot at the NHL.

This brings me to what the organization and its fans should be wary of. I advocated during the 2010 NHL Entry Draft to take goaltender Jack Campbell with our 1st round pick, tenth overall. Instead, the Rangers did not address their weakness in goal during the entire draft. The scouting staff drafted six forwards and one defenseman, addressing other needs in the organization. The team did well to find Christian Thomas (47 goals so far this season) and an imposing defender in the Chris Pronger/Zdeno Chara mold with Dylan McIlrath, but they did not draft a goaltender which increases the lack of depth this team has. Outside of the three prospects above and the current NHL goaltenders, there are no goalies who's rights the team owns. Glen Sather was ill-prepared to take on any problems where one of his goaltenders might get hurt, though it was a freak accident that caused it. Now, the Rangers must rely on Cameron Talbot to be the insurance policy to Henrik Lundqvist. If I am Sather, I am hoping for a goaltender to be placed on waivers. Biron's injury could not have come at a worse time, as the Rangers staff is truly handcuffed with their ability to address the problem now. In the coming draft, the Rangers must draft a goaltender to set themselves up two or three years down the road. The team may also invest in a veteran AHL netminder with NHL experience such as Dany Sabourin or Nolan Schaefer as an extra insurance policy.

This lack of depth is the Rangers' only true organizational weakness aside from top end talent. With only five prospects and no NHL-ready netminders, the team could be in for a rude awakening down the road. Cameron Talbot could prove to be a good NHL player at the moment and perform well above expectations, but fans should gauge their expectations to that of such a rookie pro goaltender out of the college ranks. If Sather and Co do not shore up their goaltending depth, they will be in for a rude awakening in the future.