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New York Islanders Garth Snow Five Biggest Blunders

NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 12: General Manager Garth Snow of the New York Islanders watches the teams first practice at the Barclays Center on September 12, 2013 in Brooklyn borough of New York City. The Islanders are due to move into the building at the start of the 2015-16 season. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 12: General Manager Garth Snow of the New York Islanders watches the teams first practice at the Barclays Center on September 12, 2013 in Brooklyn borough of New York City. The Islanders are due to move into the building at the start of the 2015-16 season. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) /
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NEW YORK, NY – DECEMBER 18: Jean-Francois Berube #30 of the New York Islanders prepares to tend net against the Ottawa Senators at the Barclays Center on December 18, 2016 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY – DECEMBER 18: Jean-Francois Berube #30 of the New York Islanders prepares to tend net against the Ottawa Senators at the Barclays Center on December 18, 2016 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) /

Three Goalies

At the end of the Islanders 2015 training camp, starting goalie Jaroslav Halak sustained an injury.  So when the Los Angeles Kings waived goalie Jean-Francois Berube, the Islanders pounced and claimed him.

Thomas Greiss, who was only acquired three months earlier in free agency would start. And Jean-Francois Berube would be the backup.

Halak missed a total of four games at the start of the 2015-16 NHL season. But instead of sending Jean-Francois Berube to waivers in order to play in the AHL, the Islanders just kept him on the active roster.

For two seasons. For two full seasons, the New York Islanders had three goalies on the active roster. For some reason, Garth Snow didn’t want to waive Berube.

Over his two seasons with the New York Islanders, Berube held a 3.11GAA and .900SV%. He wasn’t good enough to keep on the roster.

The impact of carrying a third goalie negatively affected the other goalies on the Islanders roster. Specifically, Jaroslav Halak. Halak’s displeasure with the situation was highlighted with two tweets from his agent Allan Walsh at the start of the 2016-17 season.

Halak was so bad that season that by the end of the calendar year he was waived and spent close to three months playing in the AHL. In the meantime, Thomas Greiss carried the Islanders workload in nets. Berube couldn’t be relied upon to backup the German keeper.

Think about that. Berube wasn’t good enough to play, but he couldn’t be waived.

Eventually, the Islanders would lose Berube in the Vegas expansion draft. For nothing. Was it worth it? Hardly.

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