Alex Nedeljkovic Aims for Starting Role as Dubas' Original Goalie Trade Plans Emerge
Pittsburgh Penguins goalie Alex Nedeljkovic is making a push to be the starter as Kyle Dubas looks to shake things up in goal.
The Penguins have managed to crawl their way back into the hunt for a playoff spot this season, but they've done so with very little help from their goalies.
Tristan Jarry has been a disaster, made evident by the fact that the team put him on waivers earlier this week.
NHL reporter Matt Vensel confirmed today that Penguins general manager Kyle Dubas has been exploring trade options for Tristan Jarry since last summer.
It is not clear if Dubas would want a goalie in return or not, but moving Jarry would leave Alex Nedeljkovic as the clear starter.
The 29-year-old has made 19 starts for the Penguins this season, posting an 8-7-4 record along with a 3.33 goals-against-average and an .890 save percentage.
Those numbers certainly aren't great, but he has been marginally better than Jarry, who has struggled so much he is now in the AHL.
Jarry has an 8-8-4 record this season, a 3.31 goals-against, and an .884 save percentage.
One of the key differences between the netminders is Nedeljkovic's puck-handling ability which was on full display last night.
The goalie became the first in NHL history to record a goal and an assist in the same contest.
He also became the first goalie to have recorded goals in each of the ECHL, AHL, and NHL.
It is nice to get some offense from your goaltender, but at the end of the day his job is to stop pucks and so far he hasn't been great at that this season.
He'll certainly get a chance to take over as starter with Jarry in the minors, but if his numbers don't improve look for rookie netminder Joel Blomqvist to get more starts or perhaps more likely, look for Kyle Dubas to make a trade.
