The first goaltending announcement was the Toronto Maple Leafs re-acquiring Curtis Joseph. The unrestricted free agent played nine games in Calgary last season as a backup to Miikka Kiprusoff. Joseph will play the same role in Toronto as he will back up Vesa Toskala and get into 15-20 games if Toskala remains healthy. Joseph is 41 and is a reserve pick at best in the deepest of fantasy leagues.

The Washington Capitals then signed Jose Theodore. The former Hart Trophy winner was stellar in the last half of the season for the Avalanche and then carried them to a first round win over Minnesota before losing in four straight to the eventual Stanley Cup champion Detroit Red Wings in the second round. Theodore played as well as he did in 2008 as he did when he won the Hart and Vezina in 2001/02. The Capitals will need more of the same to contend for the Stanley Cup next season. Theodore should be a top ten pick for goaltenders in fantasy pools that use goaltending categories.

The Colorado Avalanche then replaced Theodore as they signed Andrew Raycroft. Raycroft had a horrid season last year and the Maple Leafs bought him out. Raycroft is scheduled to back up Peter Budaj at this time and we would not recommend using a selection on Raycroft at this time. He should get into 15 games at best. Anymore, and the Avs could be in serious trouble in goal.

The Detroit Red Wings went out and bought Ty Conklin for only $750,000. He will back up Chris Osgood and allow Jimmy Howard one more season in the minors. Howard is still projected as the Red Wings goalie of the future, so consider selecting him late in keeper leagues. Conklin will get into about 30-35 games as the Red Wings will not want to wear out the 36-year-old Osgood. Conklin will have some value in deeper leagues as he should pick up a lot of victories, even if he gets into only 30 games for the Stanley Cup champs.

Cristobal Huet signed a monster contract with the Chicago Blackhawks, as the Blackhawks got some much needed help in net. It will set back their plans to use Corey Crawford in goal, but the Blackhawks can't really rely on a rookie goaltender to get them into the post-season. Right now the Hawks also have Nikolai Khabibulin going into the last year of his contract, but don't be surprised if Khabibulin is dealt elsewhere. Huet's value should go up now that he is a Blackhawk and should probably be selected as a top 15 goaltender.

Olaf Kolzig was then picked up by the Tampa Bay Lightning as the Washington Capitals lost both their goalies from the post-season. The veteran Kolzig will partner with Mike Smith in the suddenly revamped Lightning lineup, relagating Karri Ramo back to the minors. Ramo is still considered the Lightning's goaltender of the future, but he certainly isn't ready for the NHL as of yet. Smith will probably play in 45-50 games, with Kolzig getting the remainder of the action. The Lightning should be greatly improved, elevating the fantasy values of both Smith and Kolzig.

Alexander Auld went to Ottawa where he will back up Martin Gerber, at least at the start of the year. Don't be surprised if Gerber falters, and Auld will then be in place to be a valuable starter for both the Senators and your fantasy team. He is worth a flier late in fantasy pools.

The last goaltender to go elsewhere on July 1 was Patrick Lalime, who went from a backup in Chicago to a backup in Buffalo. He will be the second string goaltender behind Ryan Miller in the Queen City and should get into no more than 20-25 games for the Sabres.