Flyers Should Claim Antti Raanta
By Scott Cole
Recently, a lot has been made about the Flyers depth at the goaltending position. Cal Petersen hasn't worked out. Felix Sandstrom did surprisingly well in his solo outing so far this season, but has struggled at the AHL level this year and in most of his career NHL starts. Sam Ersson has been solid, but is still an untested rookie.
Currently, the Flyers are in third place in the Metropolitan Division and are holding a playoff spot. The team has played well, but would their goalie combo be enough to make a deep run? However, one of their divisional foes could be the answer to the Flyers' prayers.
The Carolina Hurricanes have been pretty active over the last few days. They are trying to beef up for a long playoff run as well as make an attempt to catch the NY Rangers for the Metro Division title. In making these moves, they've placed goaltender Antti Raanta on waivers.
I know Raanta hasn't had a good year, but I think it's unlikely the Flyers would get a better backup goalie than him for the cost of a 5th or 6th round pick at the deadline, if they are inclined to acquire a new backup for Ersson. https://t.co/UYFJY0iIxu
— Charlie O'Connor (@charlieo_conn) March 7, 2024
Claiming Raanta on waivers would be a killer move for Philly. First of all, it would hurt the depth of Carolina's goaltending situation. Raanta has been a solid netminder for them. With him gone, the Canes have to hope that both Frederik Andersen and Pyotr Kochetkov can stay healthy as their other backups have been sketchy at best.
More importantly, Raanta is a solid goalie. At age 34, he shows no signs of slowing down. This year, he is 12-7-2 with a GAA of 2.99 and a save percentage of .872. Ok, the save percentage is his career lowest, but Carolina has struggled with a multitude of injuries this year and has only recently began to put it together. Raanta's GAA is in line with what he has done in the past.
Raanta could also serve as a great veteran mentor to Ersson. Raanta's salary this year was only $1.5 million. Perhaps he'd be willing to stick around another season. If not, he has playoff experience, going 9-8 with a save percentage of .918 and a GAA of 2.34 in the last two years with the Canes.
The Flyers can do a lot worse. Heck...they got Petersen! Claiming Raanta would be a good move. And if Danny Briere is interested, the Canes also waived Tony DeAngelo....nah...I think we're good.
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