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Blogger •HHOF Writer’s column on the NHL • RSS • Archive • CONTACT Where have all of the Canadian goalies gone?
That’s a question to ask after the NHL Network released its list of top 10 NHL goalies: 37-year-old Marc-Andre-Fleury is the only Canadian. He’s ranked 10th.
The geographic breakdown of the list: three Russians (No. 1 Andrei Vasilevskiy, No. 2 Igor Shesterkin and No. 5 Ilya Sorokin), three Americans (No. 6 Thatcher Demko, No. 7 Connor Hellebuyck, No. 9 Jake Oettinger) , one Finn (No. 3 Juuse Saros), one Swede (No. 4 Jacob Markstrom), one Dane (No. 8 Frederik Andersen) and one Canadian (No. 10 Fleury).
Here is a look beyond the rankings:
2. Central is strongest goalie division: It’s the only division with four goalies (Oettinger, Hellebuyck, Saros and Fleury.)
3. Atlantic is weakest goalie division: Vasilevskiy is considered the best goalie in the league (although Shesterkin was better last season). But the Tampa Bay goalie is the only goalie on the list from the Atlantic Division.
4. Three Americans on the list may not be USA’s goalies at the 2024 Olympics: Florida’s Spencer Knight will be in the American mix by then and don’t rule out John Gibson.
5. The Maple Leafs Equation: Toronto moved on from Frederik Andersen because the Maple Leafs believed they could do better. They replaced him with Jack Campbell. The Maple Leafs moved on from Jack Campbell because they didn’t want to pay his asking price. They are now going with Matt Murray and Ilya Samsonov. Campbell, Murray and Samsonov aren’t listed in the Top 10 list. But Carolina Hurricanes’ Andersen is at No. 8.
6. Doesn’t Make the Cut: You can’t win the Stanley Cup without quality goaltending. But Darcy Kuemper took the Colorado Avalanche to the championship a few months ago and is not on the list. Jordan Binnington won the Stanley Cup in 2019 and he’s not in the top 10. Yu
7. Who should be No. 11?: Some people, particularly in Pittsburgh, might have put Tristan Jarry on the last. The Penguins could soon tie him up into a long-term deal.
8. Candidates to be on the list next season: Gibson, Jarry, Knight and Jeremy Swayman.
Knight and Swayman are young, but you have a high ceiling.