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Kari Lehtonen fights groin injury; should the Stars find some goalie insurance?

Kari Lehtonen

FILE - In this March 6, 2010, file photo, Dallas Stars goalie Kari Lehtonen takes a drink during a during a break in the action of an NHL hockey game against the Pittsburgh Penguins in Pittsburgh. The Stars and Lehtonen have agreed to a three-year, $10.65 million contract extension. The deal announced Tuesday, May 11, 2010, locks up Marty Turco’s replacement through the 2012-13 season. (AP Photo/Keith Srakocic, File)

AP

If you were to choose a goalie for one game, you could do worse than Kari Lehtonen. I’m not saying that he’s a premier goalie in the league at this point in his career, but he’s a big, talented netminder who fills up a lot of the net and also comes with the pedigree of being the second overall pick in a draft.

The problem with Lehtonen - something Atlanta Thrashers fans know all too well - is that he is very injury prone. Just look at the wide array of ailments that plagued the talented but troubled Finn; from back surgery to groin strains and conditioning assignments, his body seems “not right” almost as often as he’s healthy. He only played 12, 46 and 48 games in the last three seasons ... and let’s not forget that Dallas is the home of delicious barbecue food, Tex-Mex cuisine and 22-oz. steaks. That’s not exactly the best environment for a guy who has a history of being in and out of shape.

Anyway, while it doesn’t sound like it’s a big deal, Mike Heika of the Dallas Morning News reports that Lehtonen already tweaked his groin in the preseason.

The big news today is that Kari Lehtonen missed practice with a groin injury and will not play Tuesday against Colorado in a pre-season start that had been previously scheduled.

Lehtonen, who has a long injury history, simply has had some soreness in the groin, and the Stars want to be cautious in their management of his health. He was great in his pre-season opener Friday with one goal allowed on 35 shots against in a 2-1 win against Colorado. However, he left practice Sunday because of the groin soreness.

Here’s coach Marc Crawford:

“He has a slight groin problem, so we are trying to nip it in the bud right now. He didn’t pull it or anything yesterday, he was was just trying to be careful with it. Today, it’s better but we just decided to push his start back so he can play the whole game on Thursday.

``We’re just trying to be smart with Kari. I believe he’ll practice tomorrow. We’ll change that if we come in tomorrow and he’s still sore.”

If all goes well, Lehtonen would play Thursday at home and then again in the final preseason game Sunday at St. Louis . Andrew Raycroft will get the start in goal, and that should be interesting, as Raycroft and Brent Krahn are battling for the backup goalie spot.

Look, there’s nothing wrong with being an optimist. It’s wise to take a glass half-full approach to many things in life. But that being said, are we sure that GM Joe Nieuwendyk properly prepared for the extremely injury prone Lehtonen? I know Andrew Raycroft put up decent numbers last year in Vancouver (he went 9-5-1 with a 91.1 save percentage), but he’s still
Andrew Raycroft. I’m not totally familiar with Brent Krahn’s game, but you have to think that the team isn’t going to invest it’s season in him just yet.

So with a netminder as fragile as Lehtonen, I cannot help but wonder if Jose Theodore might be a good “Lowered Expectations” fit in Dallas. I posed this idea to Joe Yerdon last night, but if Theodore was willing to take a two-way contract with a team dealing with injury worries, he might be able to steal a top job or create a 1a/1b situation. It wouldn’t be the ideal situation for Theodore, but being without an NHL job isn’t exactly a dream scenario either.

Considering Lehtonen’s frequent trips to the IR, the Stars might want to come up with a Plan B.