There are rare things in hockey: Winning a championship, scoring a natural hat trick, watching Mike Sheehan call a good game, and finding a long-term goaltender in the SPHL. Teams like Knoxville (Bryan Hince) and Columbus (Andrew Loewen) have been fortunate enough to have found tenders who have stayed several years. The Louisiana IceGators are still hoping that the stars align and they find that quality netminder who will stick around for a few seasons. Today, we'll look at a list of experienced A-level goalies (in alphabetical order) who are in situations where they could possibly be available for another team.
Adam Courchaine / Peter Di Salvo (Mississippi)
Last season, the Mississippi RiverKings were blessed with the best goalie tandem in the league. Both Di Salvo (19-8-2, 2.36, .921 in 30 games) and Courchaine (14-13-2, 2.49, .911 in 31 games) put up top-5 goalie numbers. Di Salvo tuned up over the summer playing in Australia, putting up gaudy (6-0-0, 1.33, .944 in 6 starts) stats down under. Both are capable of being full-time starters, and it's possible that RiverKings coach Derek Landsmesser may try to shop one of them around. The RiverKings placed both Courchaine and Di Salvo on their protected list, so the only way either of these netminders may be acquired is through a trade.
Update: Di Salvo re-signed by the RiverKings on 7/28/15.
Bryan Hince (Knoxville)
The MVP of the President's Cup playoffs, Hince (5-0, 2.17, .938 in 5 postseason starts) has cemented his reputation as the big-game goalie in the SPHL. He's a 5 year pro who has played his entire SPHL career in Knoxville. After the season, he was left unprotected by the Ice Bears, but it is highly unlikely that he would sign for a 6th season elsewhere.
Jesse Kallechy (Huntsville)
Kallechy is known by IceGators fans as the goalie who was traded off to Huntsville near the end of the 2012-13 season, then promptly booting the IceGators from the playoffs. Since then, Kallechy had a mediocre 2013-14 season and a nightmarish 2014-15 (3-18-2, 3.55, .875 in 24 games) campaign. He was left unprotected by the Havoc in favor of Kevin Genoe, and could be actively looking for a job in October.
Breton Lindoff (FHL Danville)
Like Jesse Kallechy, Lindoff is also a former IceGator. He was one of the guys that came in after the Kallechy trade and Riley Gill callup during the 2012-13 season, and stuck around through the playoffs. Since then, he had a rough stint in Bloomington at the beginning of the 13-14 season. Last season, he went to Danville and played well, going 9-4-0 with a 2.75 GAA and a .910 SV%. Lindoff could be ready to crack a SPHL roster again.
Ross MacKinnon (FHL Watertown)
Here's a blast from the past... MacKinnon left hockey after winning back-to-back President's Cups in Pensacola, and has since played one game in Watertown, giving up 2 goals on 34 shots in his only win of the season. It's unknown if MacKinnon's planning on making a return to professional hockey in 2015-16. If he did, he would have high upside for any team willing to take a chance.
Dan McWhinney (FHL Dayton)
Former RiverKings goalie McWhinney has played in so many games he would qualify as a veteran in the SPHL. Last season, he found himself in the FHL and put up excellent numbers (10-3-1, 2.53, .932 in 14 games). However, the SPHL veteran rules are likely going to prevent any team in this league from picking him up.
Last season, the Mississippi RiverKings were blessed with the best goalie tandem in the league. Both Di Salvo (19-8-2, 2.36, .921 in 30 games) and Courchaine (14-13-2, 2.49, .911 in 31 games) put up top-5 goalie numbers. Di Salvo tuned up over the summer playing in Australia, putting up gaudy (6-0-0, 1.33, .944 in 6 starts) stats down under. Both are capable of being full-time starters, and it's possible that RiverKings coach Derek Landsmesser may try to shop one of them around. The RiverKings placed both Courchaine and Di Salvo on their protected list, so the only way either of these netminders may be acquired is through a trade.
Update: Di Salvo re-signed by the RiverKings on 7/28/15.
Bryan Hince (Knoxville)
The MVP of the President's Cup playoffs, Hince (5-0, 2.17, .938 in 5 postseason starts) has cemented his reputation as the big-game goalie in the SPHL. He's a 5 year pro who has played his entire SPHL career in Knoxville. After the season, he was left unprotected by the Ice Bears, but it is highly unlikely that he would sign for a 6th season elsewhere.
Jesse Kallechy (Huntsville)
Kallechy is known by IceGators fans as the goalie who was traded off to Huntsville near the end of the 2012-13 season, then promptly booting the IceGators from the playoffs. Since then, Kallechy had a mediocre 2013-14 season and a nightmarish 2014-15 (3-18-2, 3.55, .875 in 24 games) campaign. He was left unprotected by the Havoc in favor of Kevin Genoe, and could be actively looking for a job in October.
Breton Lindoff (FHL Danville)
Like Jesse Kallechy, Lindoff is also a former IceGator. He was one of the guys that came in after the Kallechy trade and Riley Gill callup during the 2012-13 season, and stuck around through the playoffs. Since then, he had a rough stint in Bloomington at the beginning of the 13-14 season. Last season, he went to Danville and played well, going 9-4-0 with a 2.75 GAA and a .910 SV%. Lindoff could be ready to crack a SPHL roster again.
Ross MacKinnon (FHL Watertown)
Here's a blast from the past... MacKinnon left hockey after winning back-to-back President's Cups in Pensacola, and has since played one game in Watertown, giving up 2 goals on 34 shots in his only win of the season. It's unknown if MacKinnon's planning on making a return to professional hockey in 2015-16. If he did, he would have high upside for any team willing to take a chance.
Dan McWhinney (FHL Dayton)
Former RiverKings goalie McWhinney has played in so many games he would qualify as a veteran in the SPHL. Last season, he found himself in the FHL and put up excellent numbers (10-3-1, 2.53, .932 in 14 games). However, the SPHL veteran rules are likely going to prevent any team in this league from picking him up.
Although the IceGators will once again seek out new help in net, they have several other goaltending options available to them. They could elect to recruit from the college ranks like they did with Marco De Filippo and possibly find a gem like Scott Diebold. The Gators could also recruit from Europe, as Coach Omicioli's background gives him recruiting contacts in both areas. The only certainty is that the Louisiana IceGators will have two new faces in net this season. Hopefully, they get lucky and find the man who will stop opposing team's pucks for the next few years.