Emery?

Building off reports by Dreger about the Flyers being in the running for signing Emery, you really didn't think I'd entirely refrain from comment, did you?

First, the latest:

Our daily update on Ray Emery's future presents a challenge for the veteran goalie.

Emery, admittedly, needs conditioning time in the American Hockey League. The problem is, if he negotiates and accepts a one-way contract, his conditioning stint can't be longer than two weeks without having to go through waivers.

If Emery agrees to a two-way contract, because of his age and experience, he would also have to clear waivers to remain with the team he originally signed with.

Emery needs to decide whether he can pull his game together in the AHL with a 2 week stint, or face the risk of being claimed by another NHL team.

The possibility of Emery signing with the Flyers is a tough one to measure up.

First of all, no, I would not have predicted the Flyers would make much of a play for him. Second, I think the Flyers are willing to go with Bobby Boucher into the playoffs, but are nervous about it.

The risk of signing Emery depends on your perspective. On one hand, he is high risk because questions about his volatile personality were never entirely put to rest, and he hasn't played in a year because of a career threatening injury. On the other hand, he is low risk for the Flyers because he will sign for a low amount that can be fit under the cap without making other moves, and can be stashed in the AHL.

Dreger provides good info about Emery's waiver wire exposure. If the Flyers could've signed Emery on a two-way contract, and kept him in the AHL indefinitely with no waivers complications, the signing would have been very low risk. Even as it is, if I were the Flyers, I wouldn't let the chances of him being claimed on waivers prevent you from even trying to make a move that would help the team. I guess you could make the point that it hurts the confidence of Bobby Boucher if the Flyers publicly try to get another goalie but then are 'stuck' with the guys they have, but I don't buy that (Boucher's had plenty of ups and downs in his career, and Bob seems level-headed).

I'd peg the chances of Emery signing with the Flyers low, but realistic. If they can sign him as an insurance policy with no guarantees of him seeing NHL time, there may not be much harm in signing him. In the somewhat unlikely case that he is 100% physically and mentally, I think he offers the Flyers more in net than either Boucher or Bob. If he doesn't perform in the AHL, the Flyers just never call him up the NHL. Given that Emery is still in "comeback" mode, I think he is prepared for that possibility to be in the mix for a Stanley Cup contender.

Of course Michael Leighton is also somewhat of an insurance policy. He is currently 2-7 on a dreadful Phantoms team with a .912 save percentage (for point of comparison, Johan Backlund is 6-12 with an .883 save percentage).

I think we'll see one way or the other by Monday.