Should The Buffalo Sabres Trade Jhonas Enroth?
The Buffalo Sabres may not be at the top of the Eastern Conference right now, but the team has been doing all right recently, winning seven of their last ten games. That includes, most recently, a 1-0 victory over the Stanley Cup Champions, the Los Angeles Kings, on Tuesday at First Niagara Center.
The win over the Kings saw Buffalo Sabres netminder Jhonas Enroth put up a 34-save shutout. But could Enroth be on his way out of Buffalo shortly?
The Score reported that Buffalo Sabres general manager Tim Murray is looking to trade one of his goaltenders. Whether that’s Enroth or Michal Neuvirth is uncertain at this point, but both are set to become unrestricted free agents this summer and it isn’t likely that the team will sign both of them. Rather, sign one, and trade the other – likely during the season – to get the best return.
Enroth has been performing well lately, despite the struggles the team as a whole has had. Enroth has never been shy about speaking his mind about the Buffalo Sabres’ less-than-stellar play – remember his infamous quote from January, when a frustrated Enroth said it was “tough to win” with that team? – but he’s done all he can to keep the team in it.
“It’s tough to win with this team.”
Overall this season, his record is 7-10-1, with a 2.91 GAA and .918 save percentage. He’s started 17 of the 18 games he’s appeared in. Although he isn’t at the top of the league in terms of save percentage or GAA, the sheer number of shots Enroth has faced this season has to be a factor when considering his performance.
Check this out: in 18 games, Enroth has faced 631 shots. That’s tied for eighth-most in the league — but all the goalies who have faced more shots, have appeared in more games, and Enroth’s shots faced-per-game percentage is much higher than the rest.
For instance, Cory Schneider has faced 790 shots — in 27 games, for an average of 29.259 shots/game. Carey Price has faced 710 shots in 24 games, an average of 29.583 shots per game.
Skip down the line:
- Kari Lehtonen – avg. 30.7 shots against/game
- Jonathan Quick – avg. 30.5 shots against/game
- Pekka Rinne – avg. 27.7 shots against/game
- Ben Bishop – avg. 26.8 shots against/game
- Antti Niemi – avg. 30.3 shots against/game
Tied with Enroth is Frederick Andersen, who has also faced 631 shots against — but in five more games played, for an average of 27.43 shots against per game.
Then there’s Enroth, who averages 35 shots faced per game. That’s quite a significant difference from those around him.
Enroth has been a member of the Buffalo Sabres organization for nearly nine years now, having been drafted by the team in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft.
After a few years overseas, he made the transition to North America, starting off with the Portland Pirates in the 2008-2009 season. Enroth saw his first NHL action in the 2009-10 season and flip-flopped between the NHL and AHL for a few seasons. His breakout season was the 2011-12 year, when he played in 26 NHL games and logged almost 1400 minutes of ice time.
With the departure of Ryan Miller last season, Enroth was forced to step up in a big way and take on a leading role in the Buffalo Sabres organization. The starting goaltending job was open this season, and it’s been a battle between Enroth and Neuvirth.
He’s stepped up nicely to the challenge and has been sharp. Just look at any of his big-save performances, whether it’s Tuesday’s 34-save shutout, his 41-save performance against the top team in the NHL on November 29, or his 43-save performance against the Washington Capitals on November 22. Enroth has faced over 20 shots in almost all of his games this season, and he’s stepped up to the challenge every time to give the Buffalo Sabres their best chance at a victory.
So the question now is this – should the Buffalo Sabres trade Jhonas Enroth? Many say “trade him while he’s hot,” while others might say “he’s doing well, keep him, see what happens with the rest of the season!” Some may be concerned about the “tank” or the possibility of picking up a high draft pick like Jack Eichel or Connor McDavid. Others may want to see him succeed elsewhere. What do you think? Vote in the poll below and leave your comments.