The Goalie Report: Risers and Fallers

This week, we'll highlight the top netminding performances along with some of the poorest efforts, as we provide a barometer of the weekly fluctuations at this position around the NHL.

Trending Up

Connor Hellebuyck, Jets (3-0-0, .989 Sv%, 0.34 GAA)   

The past week has seen a continuation of the early season success for Hellebuyck and the league-leading Jets. This video game stat line isn't likely to last for him or his team, but Hellebuyck is living up to his annual billing as one of the NHL's top goalies. He should have been one of the first goalies to come off the board in your fantasy leagues and is poised to be among the busiest goalies with the best statistics once again.   

Logan Thompson, Capitals (2-0-0, .950 Sv%, 1.50 GAA)

So far this season, Thompson has formed part of even share of the goalie starts in Washington despite a perfect 7-0 record for the surging Capitals. That's made for a very nice debut in his first season with his new club. The bonus for the Caps is that his partner in goal, Charlie Lindgren, has posted similar peripheral statistics to date, causing this club to be one of the most positive stories in the league. At the very least, Thompson ought to be best-positioned to get a slightly larger share of the goalie load here, based on his win percentage so far.

Juuse Saros, Predators (1-0-1, .936 Sv%, 2.32 GAA)

At the start of this season, Saros was expected to backstop a team that was destined to be among the league leaders. Despite the fact that the Predators have to rate as the biggest disappointment of any team in the NHL, he's been holding up his end of the bargain. His level of play remains consistent with the rest of his distinguished career. It's the offense in front of him that needs to get their collective act together in Nashville.

Pyotr Kochetkov, Hurricanes (3-0-0, .956 Sv%, 2.33 GAA)

The annual Frederik Andersen injury has already occurred in Carolina, once again handing the top goalie assignment to Kochetkov, who has gotten off to an excellent 8-1 start this season. He has posted excellent numbers in two prior seasons. With his hot start, he may finally be tabbed as the unquestionable top goalie in Carolina this season, regardless of whenever Andersen might return to the lineup. This team has proven capable of keeping a lid on the shots that they allow their goalies to defend. Within this framework, Kochetkov has proven to be a solid option and should be considered a high win probability whenever he starts for this club.    

Jacob Markstrom, Devils (3-0-0, .914 Sv%, 2.31 GAA)

While there was some worry over the fact that Markstrom's numbers from his last two years in Calgary had slipped from career norms, he's rebounded nicely in his debut with the Devils this season. During the offseason, Devils' management identified a need to upgrade their netminding depth as it was clearly a weak spot in their roster last year. His early performance has justified the confidence placed in him and has played a key role in vaulting the Devils to the top portion of the Eastern Conference standings.    

Alexandar Georgiev, Avalanche (2-0-1, .921 Sv%, 2.33 GAA)

Georgiev is entering his third season with the Avs, after posting 125 games played in his first two seasons in Colorado. This year he stumbled out of the gate and ceded control of the crease to backup Justus Annunen, who recently played six games in an eight-game stretch. However, Georgiev has been strong over his last three consecutive starts, with a real hope of regaining the lion's share of the goalie assignments here. The Avs should be one of the strongest teams in the league, which means he should enjoy the all-important high win probability that comes with the Colorado goaltending assignments on most nights.   

Trending Down

Sam Montembeault, Canadiens (0-2-1, .875 Sv%, 3.71 GAA)

After his first two impressive starts this season (both wins and only one goal allowed), Montembeault began to be touted as a candidate to represent Canada at the upcoming Four Nations Cup. Sadly, just as quickly as his name was linked to those accolades, his performance and that of the Habs has declined badly. It looks like the Canadiens will continue to reside in the bottom of the league standings. That means a lot of rubber will be coming at Montembeault and he'll probably see another unflattering stat line on his resume by season's end.

Igor Shesterkin, Rangers (0-2-0, .727 Sv%, 6.59 GAA)

Shesterkin is regarded as one of the most talented goalies in the league and is currently embroiled in contract talks that will eventually earn him the largest contract ever awarded to a goalie. However, this past week is a reminder that even the best will stumble from time to time. His numbers last week were horrible, the worst in the league among all goalies. Rest assured that he won't show up on this side of the Goalie Report too often.     

Jordan Binnington, Blues (0-2-0, .807 Sv%, 5.57 GAA)

The veteran Blues netminder has seen two thirds of the goalie starts in St. Louis thus far, which is a little more than we were led to expect, in terms of pre-season intel from the Blues. The fact of the matter is that neither he, nor his backup Joel Hofer, has distinguished themselves through this early season sample size. However, the Blues management group has a longstanding faith in Binnington. A Stanley Cup win on your resume will do that for you. The Blues are going to be in a dogfight for a playoff spot and they'll be looking for improvement throughout their roster. That could result in a "win and you stay in" goalie share here.          

Alex Nedeljkovic, Penguins (0-2-0, .820 Sv%, 4.92 GAA)

A number of pundits forecast a tough year ahead for the Penguins and cited subpar goaltending as a potential issue. That deficiency has certainly come to pass for both Nedeljkovic and his tandem partner, Tristan Jarry, who was sent down to the minors to rediscover his form. Nedeljkovic has certainly not done anything to take advantage of the opportunity to run with the number one role. Rookie Joel Blomqvist was also given a chance to start some games, but he has struggled just as badly as the two veterans so far. Goaltending is a mess on the shores of the Three Rivers these days.