Flyers free-agent target: G Anders Lindback

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Each day from now until July 1, the day free agency begins, Tom Dougherty and Tim Riday will profile some of the NHL's top impending free agents and project their likelihood of signing with the Flyers.

Anders Lindback, goalie
Age: 27
Height: 6-6
Weight: 215
Last team: Buffalo Sabres
2014-15 cap hit: $925,000

Scouting report
The left-handed catching Swede has tremendous size at 6-foot-6, but he often makes himself small between the pipes. He works hard at improving his technique, but has yet to find a consistent level of play. Often, he fights the puck, which leads to soft goals.

A 2008 seventh-round draft pick by the Predators, Lindback spent his first two years in Nashville. He came over to North America for the 2010-11 season, playing a combined 26 games in the American League and with the Preds. He posted a 2.60 goals-against average and a .915 save percentage in '10-11 with the Predators, and then a 2.42 GAA and .912 save percentage the following year. In June 2012, Nashville traded Lindback to the Tampa Bay Lightning.

But Lindback failed to prove anything in two years with Tampa. In a situation in which he could have shown he was capable of being a starter, Lindback posted mediocre numbers — .902 save percentage with a 2.90 GAA — backing up Mathieu Garon in the 2012-13 lockout-shortened season.

The telling point in Tampa came in the 2014 playoffs. With Ben Bishop injured, Tampa was forced to play Lindback and Kristers Gudlevskis against Montreal and the series ended in a sweep. Lindback started all four games, but was twice yanked for Gudlevskis. In those four games, Lindback yielded 14 goals on 118 shots. Tampa didn’t tender Lindback a contract after the season, and the goalie signed with the Stars last summer.

Lindback’s tenure in Dallas didn’t last long, either. He played 10 games with the Stars before Dallas traded the disappointing goalie to the Buffalo Sabres for Jhonas Enroth. In Buffalo, his numbers drastically improved. In 16 games with the Sabres, Lindback was 4-8-2 with a .924 save percentage and a 2.76 GAA.

Dougherty's projection
Outside of being a giant, Lindback doesn't do much for me. A goalie with his size should never look small in net and that's a problem with Lindback.

The Flyers are in the market for a backup for Steve Mason, but Lindback is a below-average option. Dave Hakstol has to be comfortable playing his backup if Mason goes down with an injury, and I'm not so sure he would with Lindback. Weak goals are killers and the netminder is prone to them. I don't see Ron Hextall targeting Lindback.

While he would come cheap, there are better options out there than Lindback, including Enroth. Even re-signing Rob Zepp would be a better call than Lindback. Strong "no" here.

Riday's projection
Lindback wouldn't be my first or second choice to back up Steve Mason, but the towering netminder is a realistic option for the Flyers.

If Hextall is looking to spend the same amount of money on next season's backup as he did on Ray Emery the past two years, Lindback is right there for the taking. He'd come cheap, but he's not going to be as reliable as Enroth, Thomas Greiss or Michal Neuvirth.

It's important to keep in mind, however, that Lindback is just 27 years old and still has some time to work out the kinks. There's some upside to his overall game despite his mediocre career numbers — 40-51-7 record, .905 save percentage, 2.83 goals-against average and three shutouts. 

And if goalies like Enroth, Greiss and Neuvirth fly off the free-agent market quickly with loaded contracts, Lindback might not be such a bad idea considering the Flyers already have $69 million in cap space tied up for 2014-15.

Also factor in that if he's with the Flyers, he can't do any more damage to Hextall's club, either. He's 5-3-0 with a .922 save percentage and a 2.27 GAA in eight career starts against the orange and black. Reason enough to sign him? Maybe.

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