Young goalie's chance

With the NHL playoffs being so interesting, the AHL's battle for the Calder Cup gets almost no attention. Only the story of Tony Hrkac got some publicity. It's interesting to see four young goalies battling in the Conference Finals. Cory Schneider, Michal Neuvirth and Tukka Rask are the usual suspects - top prospects ready for the NHL, but waiting for a roster spot. Houston Aeros' Anton Khudobin is the weakest of the four statistically, so his performance might be overlooked. The 23-year old Russian was Minnesota's seventh round pick in 2004 and although he played for the Russian junior team at the WJC (silver medals in 2005 and 2006), almost no one expected him to make it to the NHL - even after his 20-1-4 rookie season in the ECHL in 07-08. He actually spent most of the current season in the ECHL and couldn't find his game in the short time he had spent with the Aeros. He still hasn't reached the level of Schneider or Rask, but his performance in the playoffs might make him a candidate to be Niklas Backstrom's backup in Minnesota if Josh Harding gets traded.