Two of the more confounding goalie situations in the Eastern Conference plus one pleasant surprise.

Goaltending is the most important position in hockey as well as numerous fantasy hockey formats. Unfortunately, it is also a very volatile position. Things can derail very quickly and due to the lower volume of goalies in the world, each injury is so much more significant. Simply put, the margin of error is minuscule.

Today we will look at some of the more interesting developments in the crease among the Eastern Conference teams. We will go to both extremes: some situation involve starters that are well-established and playing at the best while others involve a lot of uncertainty.

Detroit

Recently we learned about a groin injury suffered by Red Wings' starter Jimmy Howard. With backup Jonas Gustavsson already out with an injury that leaves Petr Mrazek as the man to carry the load for the time being. So far Mrazek has held up well primarily in a backup role this year with a record of 5-3-1 and a .916 save percentage. Beyond him it gets very thin with Thomas McCollum being called up to serve as the temporary backup. This has led to speculation that the Wings will make a move to shore up their crease.

The easiest solution is the short-term one which is to acquire a journeyman or a forgotten backup that a team may not value very highly. For example, Jason Labarbera site #4 on the Ducks' goalie depth chart and has been the odd man out after the team signed Ilya Bryzgalov. This acquisition could probably be done for cheap and would serve as a bridge until Gustavsson returns.

If it turns out that Howard's injury is worse than the initial diagnosis of week-to-week, the team may be forced to make a more significant move. This is where Martin Brodeur can come into play. While this move would likely cost more, it would allow Brodeur to play in meaningful games down the stretch.

All of this is speculation right now though. What we know is that Mrazek will be playing a lot of hockey for the Red Wings over the next little while. Given the quality of the team in front of him, this makes Mrazek a solid short-term add in fantasy leagues with some upside for much more depending on what happens with the injuries and the trade talks.

Florida