Dallas Stars Sign Goaltender Anton Khudobin To Two-Year Deal
The Dallas Stars made their first big offseason move in the crease on Sunday morning. They signed goaltender Anton Khudobin to a two-year deal to serve as their newest backup.
It’s go time around the NHL, and the Dallas Stars are already confirming moves.
When the free agency period opened up on Sunday morning, the Stars confirmed an early report by signing free agent goaltender Anton Khudobin on a two-year deal.
The contract is worth an AAV of $2.5 million per year and will take the 32-year-old goalie through the 2019-20 season.
Upon entering the offseason, it was clear that the Stars needed a backup goaltender. Kari Lehtonen couldn’t carry the load down the stretch in 2017-18 as the backup. Considering he was a pending UFA, it was time for Dallas to move on.
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They are doing that with Khudobin, and it’s a solid deal.
First off, the length of the contract is good. It gives Khudobin a chance to serve as the full-time backup for two years while the goalie prospects in the system (Jake Oettinger and Colton Point) work their way up.
On top of that, the money is good. The Dallas Stars needed to avoid spending heavy on a backup after consecutive years of pouring excessive money into their goalie tandem. Khudobin is a cheap and reliable option to stand behind Ben Bishop.
Along with the term and salary being good, the primary theme is that Khudobin is a solid backup.
The Stars entered free agency knowing they needed a smart addition to their crease. They needed a reliable goaltender that could play at least 30 games as a safety net in case Ben Bishop goes down with an injury during the year. As we noted earlier, Lehtonen couldn’t make it happen, so the team had to go in a different direction.
Khudobin, otherwise known as “Doby,” spent the past two seasons in Boston with the Bruins. In 2017-18, he posted a record of 16-6-7 along with a .913 save percentage and a 2.56 goals against average. Those are good numbers for a 32-year-old backup, especially for one that played in 31 games.
“Anton is a proven NHL netminder that gives his team a chance to win every time he’s on the ice,” Nill said in the press release. “We look forward to him joining our club and making a positive impact for the next two seasons.”
In a phone interview shortly after the signing was announced (as a side note: Khudobin is currently in Siberia and it was around 1:30 a.m. when he answered the phone), Khudobin said that the reason he chose Dallas was because of their chance to win. He added that he was not looking for money, but instead for a chance to secure a Stanley Cup.
Khudobin reads the game well and has proven to be a solid player in each of the stops throughout his career (he’s never played more than 36 games in a season). The only question mark on his resume is his playoff experience. In nine years in the NHL, he’s only played in one playoff game.
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But besides that, his status as a backup is prevalent and impressive. He should be a good fit in the Stars’ crease and turn out to be just what the Stars needed.