The Buffalo Sabres are surprisingly shallow when it comes to goaltending depth in the organization. The depth at the NHL level isn’t under question with Ryan Miller signed until the 2013-14 season and his backup, Jhonas Enroth signed through the 2012-13 season. From there, the Sabres have some question marks.
Depth at the NHL Level
Ryan Miller – Signed through 2013-14 at a cap hit of $6.25 million
The debate is still out there whether Ryan Miller is the elite goaltender the Sabres need. There is no debate that if he is on the team, Miller will be the starting goaltender for the next two years for the Sabres. Miller has one Vezina trophy and his a career 252-147-49 record with a 2.57 goals against average and .915 save percentage.
Jhonas Enroth – Signed through 2012-13 at a cap hit of $675,000
Jhonas Enroth has had an interesting career arc with the Buffalo Sabres, saving the Sabres playoff chances during the 2010-11 season and having a disappointing season in his first full season as an NHL backup goaltender. Enroth went 8-11-4 last season with a 2.70 GAA and .917 SV%. In his career, Enroth is 17-14-6 with a .913 SV% and 2.75 GAA.
Depth at the AHL Level
Connor Knapp – Signed an entry level contract through 2012-13
Connor Knapp has finished his career at the University of Miami (OH) with a 46-22-11 record over four seasons and made three appearances in the NCAA tournament, including on Frozen Four in 2010. He split time with Cody Reichard during his time at Miami (OH). Knapp is listed as the best Sabres goaltending prospect according to Hockey’s Future and was apart of the Rochester Americans after his college career ended but never made an appearance.
Nathan Lieuwen – Signed an entry level contract through 2014-15
Nathan Lieuwen just recently signed an entry level contract with the Sabres after spending parts of five seasons with the Kootenay Ice. Lieuwen led the Ice to the Memorial Cup in 2011 after winning the WHL Championship. Lieuwen should be fighting for a starting spot with the Rochester Americans as his eligibility with the Ice should have run out.
David Leggio – Unrestricted free agent
Leggio has been the starting goaltender for the Rochester Americans for parts of the past two seasons. The Western New York native had a 28-24-2 record with Rochester last season as they were swept in the first round of the Calder Cup playoffs by the Toronto Marlies. With the competition from Knapp and Lieuwen and the lack of callups to the parent club, Leggio may be an odd man out when it comes to getting another contract this upcoming season.
Drew MacIntyre – Unrestricted free agent
Drew MacIntyre spent one season with the Buffalo Sabres organization as he signed a contract with the team this past offseason. MacIntyre even was given the opportunity to play some NHL minutes as he made two appearances with the team and played a total of 43 minutes. It was his first NHL minutes since 2007-08 with the Vancouver Canucks. By the end of the season though, MacIntyre may have fallen out of favor with the Americans coaching staff as he was pulled in favor of Connor Knapp to backup Leggio.