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Another blast from the past: David Aebischer receives training camp tryout with Winnipeg

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James

There are several former NHL goalies who would provide fodder for a few “where are they now?” features. While I assume he retired by default/because of injuries, I’ll always wonder what happened to Manny Fernandez; he wasn’t a star caliber goalie, but Fernandez was above average as a backup in his final season with the Boston Bruins (16-8-3 with a .910 save percentage and 2.59 GAA behind Tim Thomas during his first Vezina Trophy winning campaign). Fernandez, John Grahame and Cristobal Huet are just a few examples of once-prominent goalies who have fallen off the map once they left the NHL.

One name many of us haven’t discussed in ages is former Colorado Avalanche goalie David Aebischer. The Swiss-born goalie faced the difficult task of inheriting the No. 1 job in Colorado during the 2003-04 season after Patrick Roy retired. Aebischer actually ran with that job for one season, earning 32 wins with a sparkling .924 save percentage and 2.09 GAA in 62 games played. Whether you can blame the lockout or just call him a one-hit wonder, Aebischer’s NHL career quickly plummeted after that season, leading him to take his game to Switzerland.

He’s been there for four years, but the Winnipeg Jets handed him a training camp tryout, much like the Chicago Blackhawks did with Ray Emery. Unfortunately for Aebischer, he doesn’t have Emery’s reasonable chance to earn a job at the NHL level; the Jets are likely set in net with Ondrej Pavelec and Chris Mason (at least for this season). Then again, that goalie duo represents leftovers from the Atlanta Thrashers regime, so you never know how new GM Kevin Cheveldayoff actually feels about Pavelec or Mason.

Ed Tait discusses the long odds that Aebischer faces.

Technically, it’s true – the Jets confirm Aebischer will be in their training camp on a ‘try-out’ contract. Essentially, he is on loan from his club team in the Swiss league, Lugano, but is a real long-shot to unseat either Ondrej Pavelec or Chris Mason or even to be considered for a spot with the St. John’s IceCaps.

The 33-year-old product of Fribourg, Switzerland was drafted by the Avs in 1997 and played for the Swiss at the 1998 World Junior championships when they shocked the international hockey world by grabbing the bronze (the year Canada completely collapsed and finished eighth). Aebischer was named the all-star goaltender in that tournament; Canada had Roberto Luongo and Mathieu Garon between the pipes, just FYI.

In all likelihood Aebischer will be headed back to Lugano. If he was to stick, the Jets would have to come to a financial agreement with the Swiss club to get him signed to an NHL deal.


If nothing else, it will make the Jets’ training camp a bit more interesting to follow.

(H/T to Rotoworld.)