The Habs' once-hot, now-not goalie has been traded. The Montreal Canadiens acquired netminder David Aebischer from the Colorado Avalanche Wednesday in return for former Hart Trophy winner Jose Theodore.
"Montreal is special because it's the mecca of hockey," Aebischer said. "I don't think it's different because the goal is the same - to win the Stanley Cup. "For a hockey player, to play for an organization like Montreal is an honour."
Aebischer is 25-14-2 with a 2.98 goals-against average and .900 save percentage in 43 appearances this season, his fifth in the NHL. The move is a money-saver for Montreal because Aebischer earns $1.9 million US, whereas Theodore's salary will rise from $4.5 million US this season to $5 million US next season and $6 million US in 2007-08.
"We gave Jose a three-year contract last summer with the idea that he was going to remain with us," Canadiens general manager and head coach Bob Gainey said. "Since then, things changed."
Theodore has proven inconsistent this season, going 17-15-5 in 38 appearances with a 3.46 GAA and .881 SP. He currently is sidelined until late March or early April with a fractured heel suffered in a fall outside his Montreal home. Theodore also tested positive for Propecia during pre-Olympic drug testing last August, when he attended Team Canada's summer orientation camp, but was not suspended by the NHL because the common hair-growth tonic is not on the league's list of banned substances.
Theodore readily admitted that he had used the tonic for 8-9 years, a claim supported by Canadiens physician Dr. David Mulder and team management. But the World Anti-Doping Agency, which oversees Olympic testing, claims it's a masking agent for the steroid nandrolone. "I'd be lying if I said these things didn't affect his output," Gainey said. "Up to what point, it's hard to say. "Jose always said that it didn't affect him, but it was increasingly difficult for him. I can't say he will not get back into shape. "No one has an answer to that question, but there comes a moment when you have to make a decision. I did it by basing mine on information which I have as well as the opinions of people in my entourage."
Theodore is 141-158-35 overall with a 2.62 GAA and .911 SP in 353 games over 10 NHL seasons since being drafted in the second round - 44th overall - by Montreal in 1994. A two-time all-star, he won the Hart Trophy, awarded annually to the NHL's most valuable player, and the Vezina Trophy as top goaltender in 2002. "We're convinced that we're securing our goaltending position for many years," Avalanche president and GM Pierre Lacroix said. "He is a proven, all-star calibre netminder and, at 29, he is entering the prime years of his career."
