Biron’s Trade Value Down?
Adam Malmut | Nov 30, 2009 | Comments 7
What will Martin Biron bring back in a trade?
Yes, it is still early to be talking about trading Marty Biron. But everyone who follows the Islanders closely knows that Rick DiPietro is on his way back by the end of the year. But let’s go over some of Biron’s statistics, shall we?
Games played: 13
Wins : 2
Losses: 8
OT Losses: 2
Goals against: 38
Save Percentage: .907%
Goals Against Average: 3.04
To his credit, one of Biron’s wins was a shutout.
With Biron getting points in four of the 13 games he has played, it looks a lot worse than it seems. But if he doesn’t rebound and chalk some up in the “W” column, his trade value will no doubt be hurting for the Islanders come the trade deadline. That is if he isn’t moved before then.
But let’s look a little deeper into the Marty “The Backup” Biron situation.
I have watched every Isles game this season, and all of which Biron has made his starts. Putting his lone shutout on the year aside, he has looked OK in net. And we must take into consideration that the Islander’s defense has been a bit, well, let’s call them a lackluster defensive corp. Aside from Andy Sutton playing the best “D” he’s ever played, and Jack Hillen really coming into his own with some great puck control and movement skills, the rest of the NYI defensemen have struggled at best. Radek Martinek went down pretty early with a leg injury. Journeyman d-man Bruno Gervais has been atrocious to be polite. And aside from making a good play or two per game, Brendan Witt is no longer the player he once was. Speaking of which, the Islanders lone All-Star of the previous season, Mark Streit, has yet to match or come close to being the premier caliber point-grabber that he is capable of being.
The Bottom Line: Blame can be shared for Biron’s mediocre performances this season. Believe me, it is not only him. The interesting thing is that the Isles only seem to show up when Dwayne Roloson is between the pipes. And “Roli” has bailed the Islanders out on more than one occasion thus far. The Islanders currently find themselves in the middle of the pack, but are losing players to injury left and right (Sutton 2-4 weeks, Weight 4-6 weeks, Nielsen day-to-day). They can ill afford to lose another player at the top of the line-up.
What’s Next? — Hopefully for the Islanders, DiPietro gracefully fulfills and completes his rehabilitation process as he is set to join the Bridgeport Sound Tigers (NYI affiliate) this upcoming Saturday. As reported by Newsday and TSN, DiPietro is looking forward to a mid-December return to the New York Islanders. As I stated in my previous blog, a ready DiPietro means an expendable Marty Biron.
The Value — If an NHL GM is looking to trade for Biron, What do the Islanders get in return? If Biron turns his so-so play around, he might be able to fetch a second-round draft choice if a team is very desperate for a goaltender (usually due to an injury to a starter). But chances are, even if he does improve going into the new year, he will likely be worth only a fourth or third-round pick at best. Unless, of course, he is packaged with other players and a larger deal is made.
But wait, there’s more! — General Manager Garth Snow has told Larry Brooks of the NY Post that owner Charles Wang has given Snow the “green light” to improve to team and make a trade, if need be, to improve the team for a playoff run. The only question that remains – What is Snow willing to give up for a top-tier player? Or will he avoid another Ryan Smyth fiasco and play “Let’s Make A Deal?”
What do YOU feel is Biron’s worth?
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You actually got to the reason why Biron’s play has been “mediocre” this season without expanding on it. Katie Strang actually got all over this one. The Isles really do only show up when Roloson is playing. Before last Saturday’s game against the Devils, Biron and Roloson had posted virtually identical numbers with the major difference being their wins and losses. Katie Strang went and did the math and as it turns out, the Isles score about half as much for Biron as they do for Roloson. With the team in front of Biron not scoring more than a goal or two per game, it becomes incumbent upon him to steal every single game he plays in. This, combined with Roloson’s exceptional play, makes Marty Biron look a little more pedestrian than he really is. Biron’s trade value probably is still limited to a 3rd rounder or so, but so long as he keeps playing the way he is his value likely won’t slip. To take that one step further, Biron’s value to the right team would be lots higher without Rick DiPietro on the bench, but the fact that Snow will need to move Biron to create roster space helps to limit his value. Basically, the point is that looking at Biron’s numbers alone is misleading because for some reason when he plays the Islanders are the 30th place team from last year, rather than being the apparent playoff contender they are this year. Also, the knock on Marty has always been that he is just solid, almost never spectacular, and I don’t know if you noticed in watching every game this season, but Marty has kept the team in almost every game he’s played. So, not only is it not just him that’s to blame for his average or below average numbers, it’s mostly the team in front of him.
Biron’s trade value will be dependent on his focus. He is good for one bad goal a game and it is usually a long shot that is stoppable. By all accounts he is a pretty laid back guy and great teammate, but that lack of focus seems to kill the team every once in a while. He was actually outplaying Roloson earlier on, but while Rollie has become sharper and started stopping breakaways/penalty shots, Biron has plateaued.
It isn’t always the number of goals that matter or the number of saves, but the softies that are the backbreakers. These are the goals that prevent your team from taking chances and therefore from getting more scoring opportunities. As much as Islander fans have a love/hate relationship with DP, when he was at the top of his game they were able to take chances in the offensive zone which leads to more goal support.
I haven’t looked at the schedule in depth, but I don’t think the quality of the opponent has figured into the equation either. Although having said that, he did have the misfortune of playing the Sabres, Flyers and Devils. All in all at his salary I still think a third rounder or late second can be had from a contender that needs insurance for the playoffs.
Bonus points:
Too bad his retro Smitty mask won’t factor into his trade value since it is the better of the masks we have seen on the Island in quite some time.
to be honest, biron has been absolutely fine. It’s not his fault the team doesnt score when hes in.
But to your point about one bad goal a game, you cant say that without saying rollie does as well ie, how many goals have been scored on him from beside the net? the fact that he does not cover his posts well is a much bigger concern to me.
All that aside, this is about birons value, and the best part of biron is his dollar value. His miniscule salary will ensure we get something more than a pick back. There are a lot of teams that HAVE to upgrade their goaltending before the playoffs and the isles will help a team unload some salary in return.
After the trade deadline, Snow will once agian be front page news for another shrewd move. Say what you will about the smyth deal being a “fiasco” but he went out and brought us a good player for what has turned out to be nothing being received by the oilers.
Biron may have to be packaged, but a straight up trade will be an actual player not a pick.
imo
Bruno Gervais is a journeyman???How is that possible, when hes been an Islander his whole young career???
I think he met journey man as being all over the ice and not being in good position.
Great comments guys! I love getting input and believe it or not, also criticisms (good or bad). MJS brought up a great point that I should have expanded upon. It seems the Isles have trouble scoring, at least so far, when Biron is in net – with exception of one or two occasions thus far into the season. Gervais has struggled very badly this season, and as Dack1972 suggested, he hasn’t found a way to be in good position. Don’t want to pick on one player because Freddy Meyer has also struggled in this department. It will be interesting to see where they add pieces (if and when they do) to fix some of these problems. And going back to Gervais, it pains me to watch his play this season after seeing what he can do – I’m referring to his stellar play in the last two months of the 08-09 season. Usually prospects develop as they go along, it’s a rare shame when they revert to their old habits.