All week leading up to Sunday, July 1, we’ll be profiling unrestricted free agents and speculating where they might end up.
Scott Clemmensen (G)
Age: 34
2011-12 cap hit: $1.2 million
The skinny:
With Tomas Vokoun and Josh Harding locked up, it looks like Clemmensen will lead this year’s class of unrestricted free agent goaltenders -- and that’s kind of sad.
Don’t get me wrong, Clemmensen is a fine and arguably underrated goaltender capable of serving a a great veteran backup. He can even fill in as the team’s number one starter when needed, but he can’t be counted on to carry a squad for an entire season.
Clemmensen has recorded a save percentage of .911 or higher in each of his last four season. However, he’s also played in just 152 career games and has never been between the pipes for more than 40 NHL contests in a single season.
If a team signs him in the hope that he will be able to serve as their opening game starter, they’ll be taking a huge risk. A more ideal scenario would be for him to act as a backup to a young goaltender that still has something to prove. He could be the Jean-Sebastien Giguere to a franchise’s Semyon Varlamov, but he can’t play like a mid-20s Giguere.
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