Sacrebleu! This affable Frenchman got the yips shortly after he hit the contract motherload and by the middle of last season, he was stapled to the pine as an $5.625 million back-up. The bottom line is simple. He's 35, has no consistency and his contract makes him unmovable. The Hawks are on the hook until the end of 2011-12 and Huet will spend that time in the AHL. The team needs the cap relief and minor-leaguer Corey Crawford only costs $750,000. You get the picture. Don't draft him.
Huet could have been one of the reasons that Dale Tallon was fired. His signing could also be an albatross on the back of the Hawks and obviously pushed Nikolai Khabibulin out the door. The Bulin Wall might have gone anyways, but having Huet's contract on the books just made it a reality.
Huet played for the Canadiens and Capitals last season, respectively for the No.1 and No.3 ranked teams from the Eastern Conference. He ranked 10th in the NHL with his 2.32 goals-against average, sixth with his .920 save percentage, and shared 11th with his 32 wins while making a career-high 52 appearances in goal. With the Blackhawks looking to make a playoff run this season, expect Huet to meet or exceed 52 appearances, and with a young, physical group of blueliners in front of him, his wins, save percentage and goals against should stay at their respectable levels.
Huet had an injury-riddled season last year but remains the Habs' top goalie entering the 2007-08 season. With the addition of Roman Hamrlik the team's defense has improved but the offense is a concern. Wile wins won't exactly be plentiful, Huet's goals-against average and save percentage should be user friendly for roto owners making him a useful second fantasy goalie.
Huet, a career backup, came out of nowhere to lead Montreal into the playoffs last year. Taking over from a sub par Jose Theodore, Huet started 37 games last year covering most of the second half of the season. Incredibly he racked up 7 shutouts in those 37 games. Add a scintillating .929 SV % and a measly 2.20 GAA and you can see what an amazing feat it truly was for a 30-year-old career No. 2 goalie. Fast forward to the 2006-07 season and Huet faces the biggest challenge of all -- proving that last year wasn't a fluke. Huet, who could go either way, is determined to prove he's the real thing. The defense in front of him is somewhat talented but lacks depth. Moreover the Habs may trade Sheldon Souray. Huet owners can only hope that the team gets a better defensive player back in any deal for Souray.
As for the rest of the defense, the team will need Andrei Markov, Craig Rivet, and Matthieu Dandenault to stay healthy as little big man Francois Bouillon is out until December. Should recently acquired defender Janne Niinimaa return to his former level of play (before an ankle injury hobbled him the last couple of years) then Huet would have that much more to work with. As it looks now the defense is a little thin and a little soft.
Cristobal Huet is hurt and has probably fallen out of favor with the team. The backup goaltender is not looked upon as a guy who can carry the load if Theodore gets hurt. Don’t look for much in the way of production out of him this season.
