Top NHL Goaltenders: Who Is Actually On The Trading Block

As the NHL season rolls along and teams find they need better netminding to compete for a playoff spot, names of goaltenders start popping up in the rumor mill. The St. Louis Blues, Philadelphia Flyers, Florida Panthers, and Calgary Flames are just a few of the teams looking at goalies who can offer better options than they currently employ. They might even be willing to pay handsomely for help. But, are the netminders they're looking at actually available?

Would the Columbus Blue Jackets really consider moving Sergei Bobrovsky or the Edmonton Oilers sending out Cam Talbot? Both teams are fighting for a playoff spot and moving either netminder leaves them weaker at the goaltender position. Still, the right return might get their respective organizations to listen.

Here are some of the biggest names on the goaltender trade market and whether or not there's a chance these goalies will actually be moved.

Sergei Bobrovsky

An unrestricted free agent at the end of the year, Bobrovsky is already known to be a goalie who expects big money in free agency. So much, it suggested he wants to be the highest paid goalie in the NHL, making more money than Carey Price's $10.5 million per season. That's a lot of coin for a goalie whose numbers are still good but has seen a bit of decline this season.

The Blue Jackets would like Bobrovsky to stay and they are certainly in the hunt for the playoffs, sitting eight in the NHL standings, but if their season slips or if Bobrovsky falters, the trade whispers might get a bit louder. It's unlikely the Blue Jackets will trade Bobrovsky, even if they risk losing him for nothing at the end of the season.

Cam Talbot

Some might argue Talbot is no longer a top-tier goaltender in the NHL and that may be true, but it wasn't long ago Talbot was playing in 70-plus games and taking the Edmonton Oilers within an inch of the Western Conference Finals. There's a very good chance he's got some of that magic still in his game.

Unfortunately, he's being overshadowed by Mikko Koskinen who came into Edmonton on a one-year deal and has won the starting job. Speculation is the Oilers would consider moving Talbot to improve their depth in other areas.

The concern for Edmonton is putting the pressure of being the starter on Koskinen when he's never been one in the NHL before and with only 11 games on his resume, he's still a serious question mark. Would Edmonton dare move another starter if they thought Koskinen's play could regress? The return for Talbot would have to be good.

Still, Talbot is an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season and if the Oilers look like they are going to miss the playoffs or Koskinen keeps up his strong play, Talbot is a real candidate to be moved.

Jimmy Howard

There was tons of noise coming out of Detroit that players were going to be moved out during their rebuild. Among them was goaltender Jimmy Howard. In fact, it was almost a certainty a couple of months ago. Now, with Howard's strong play and the uncertainty in Detroit about their goaltenders in the system, the story has changed a bit and the Red Wings are rumored to want to re-sign Howard on a long-term deal.

That said, the Red Wings are likely not a playoff team and there are teams looking at Howard, namely the St. Louis Blues. If the return is right, the Red Wings would be wise to move Howard and add another first-round pick to their rebuilding efforts.

Craig Anderson

Anderson has stated before that he's not opposed to a trade out of Ottawa. And, the Senators are not exactly going in the right direction as far as hockey organizations are concerned. The franchise has been shipping out its stars and replacing them with picks and youth and Anderson doesn't necessarily fit that mold. There is a very good chance he's moved.

The trick will be finding a team that is willing to take on his two more seasons at $4.75 million per year. He's not exactly lighting up the NHL with a 3.69 goals against average and a .903 save percentage.

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