Kinkaid Leaves Union For NHL

It was reported late Friday that Union sophomore goaltender Keith Kinkaid had signed (or made a verbal commitment) with the New Jersey Devils. In doing so, he will forgo his final two years at Union. The agreement is not official.

Personally, I think Keith should have stayed one more year because I feel he needs to prove himself in the playoffs a little more. It's not that he's played poorly in the playoffs, but he's 2-5 all-time in post-season play. He's never really stolen a game in the playoffs.

But, I also think that signing with the Devils might be the best place for him to sign for a few reasons:

1. Keith is from Long Island (he's an Islanders fan), so he will be comfortable playing on the East Coast. The Devils' minor league teams play in Albany and Trenton. It will be cool for Union fans to see Keith play just a 30 minutes away from Schenectady (that is if he's assigned to Albany).
2. The Devils' goaltending is very thin. In New Jersey, starting goaltender Martin Brodeur is 38 years old and backup goaltender Johan Hedberg is 37. So, there will be vacancies to fill in New Jersey very soon. In Albany, Jeff Frazee, Mike McKenna, and Dave Caruso saw playing time this season (click here to view stats). Frazee will turn 24 in May and has played three full seasons in the AHL and has never appeared in an NHL game. McKenna just turned 28 and has appeared in 17 NHL games in his career, including two this season with the Devils. Caruso will turn 29 in June and has spent most of his pro career in the ECHL (below the AHL). So, what I'm saying is that the guys in Jersey are getting old and the guys under them are nothing special, so this will be a great path for Keith to reach the NHL.
3. The Devils organization (or at least the top team) is known for playing great defense. In most seasons, the Devils are one of the top teams in the NHL in goals against average. A part of this is obviously Martin Brodeur, but the Devils also play a tough defensive game. It's always attractive for a goalie to go to a team that plays consistently tough defense.

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So, this brings us to the next question: Who will take over in goal for Kinkaid?

Well, you have freshman Troy Grosenick and incoming freshman Julien LaPlante. Grosenick appeared in three games for Union this season, and started one (the tie at home vs. UConn early in the year). LaPlante had a very good year in the AJHL with the Bonnyville Pontiacs, posting a 28-13-8 record with a 2.09 GAA and .925 save percentage. It will probably be up to these two guys to take over for Keith, unless Coach Leaman has something else up his sleeve. From what I've heard, Grosenick is a very capable goaltender and will be a good NCAA goaltender, so I have faith in him.

Colin Stevens, who is supposed to be an excellent goaltender, is slated to come to Union in 2012-2013. Leaman could always see if Stevens wants to come early. But, I really don't see that happening.

This also brings up another question: Who will be the third goaltender? (assuming Stevens doesn't come early)

Most teams carry three goaltenders. In my four years, Leaman has carried four goaltenders except for the small portion of the 2008-2009 season after Brett Bothwell left midseason, leaving Corey Milan and Rich Sillery as the only goaltenders. I find it very difficult to recruit a goaltender to come to Union to become the third string goalie, and I don't think you can transfer without sitting out a year. It is important to carry a third goalie because of injuries. If your starter gets hurt, you need insurance behind your second string goalie just in case he gets injured or overworked.

So, what's my solution: Kyle Anderson.

Who is Kyle Anderson you ask? He's currently a junior at Union and is the top goaltender on Union's club hockey team. Anderson put up good numbers, but it's not entirely sure what they are because the ACHA's stats are not entirely reliable (click here). In 2008, Anderson won the New York State Championship with Massena. He, along with teammate and current Union freshman Matt Hatch, were named to the all-tournament team. The importance Kyle (or any third goalie) would play would be to take the work load off of Grosenick and LaPlante during practice, so they don't get overworked and can take the occasional day off. It might be a stretch, but it's an idea.