[RELATED: NHL Top Players: Top 20 Centers | Top 20 Wings | Top 20 Defensmen]
10. Marc-Andre FleuryMinnesota Wild
Fleury was 28-23-5 with a 2.90 goals-against average and .908 save percentage in 56 regular-season games last season, including 9-2-0 with a 2.74 GAA and .910 save percentage in 11 starts after he was traded. to the Wild from the Chicago Blackhawks on March 21. The 37-year-old was 2-3 with a 3.04 GAA and .906 save percentage in five Stanley Cup Playoff games. Fleury ranks third in NHL history in wins (520), behind Martin Brodeur (691) and Patrick Roy (551), and is tied with Tony Esposito for 12th in shutouts (71). A three-time Stanley Cup winner (2009, 2016, 2017), Fleury won the Vezina Trophy voted as the best goalie in the NHL in 2020-21.
“Every single year, he’s always been one of the most exciting goalies to watch,” said NHL Network analyst and former goalie Devan Dubnyk, who played 12 seasons in the NHL. “… When you have your teammates, every single guy you’ve played with loves you just the same. I haven’t heard a single bad word about this guy, there’s a reason why he’s had the success and why he’s loved everywhere. … He absolutely loves playing the game and that gets you through the difficult times.”
Video: Marc-Andre Fleury just makes the top 10 list
9. Jake OettingerDallas Stars
Oettinger was 30-15-1 with a 2.53 GAA, .914 save percentage and two shutouts in 48 games (46 starts) last season. Although the Stars lost to the Calgary Flames in seven games in the Western Conference First Round, Oettinger led one of the highest-scoring offenses in the NHL with 13 goals and had a 1.81 GAA, .954 save percentage and one shutout. The 23-year-old made 64 saves in a 3-2 overtime loss in Game 7. Oettinger is 41-23-8 with a 2.46 GAA, .913 save percentage and two shutouts in 77 regular-season games (70 starts).
“When things weren’t going right (in Dallas), he got his opportunity, he got his call,” Dubnyk said. “… He’s got all the tools. I don’t think anything is going to happen but him to continue to go up from here. There is no reason to think otherwise. He’s got everything you need. … That wasn’t a fluke ( in the playoffs).
Video: Oettinger checks in at number 9 on the countdown
8. Frederik AndersenCarolina Hurricanes
Andersen put up excellent numbers in his first season with the Hurricanes, going 35-14-3 with a 2.17 GAA, .922 save percentage and four shutouts in 52 games (51 starts). Among goalies to play at least 20 games, the 32-year-old ranked second in GAA and tied Jacob Markstrom of the Calgary Flames for third in save percentage. Andersen, who did not play in the postseason because of a torn MCL, has won at least 30 games in four of the past six seasons and is tied with Sergei Bobrovsky for first in wins (241) since the 2014-15 season.
“To watch him move around like he does for his size (6-foot-4, 238 pounds) is impressive,” Dubnyk said. “One thing that is great, being able to play in front of a guy that is in control as he is. He is never out of it. He moves extremely well. … He doesn’t look like he is going to get scored on. “
Video: Frederik Andersen checks in at number 8
7. Connor HellebuyckWinnipeg Jets
Hellebuyck faced the most shots (2,155) and made the most saves (1,962) in the NHL last season. He played 66 games, second to Jesus Saros of the Nashville Predators (67), and was 29-27-10 with a 2.97 GAA, .910 save percentage and four shutouts. Since his first season as a No. 1 goalie in 2016-17, Hellebuyck leads goalies in games played (355), starts (346), shots against (10,957) and saves (10,031), is tied with Andrei Vasilevskiy for second in shutouts (26) and ranks third in wins (188). The 29-year-old won the Vezina Trophy in 2019-20 when he was 31-21-5 with a 2.57 GAA, .922 save percentage and six shutouts in 58 games (56 starts).
“I look at goaltenders with compete level and Hellebuyck, from the naked eye, just watching him on a nightly basis just doesn’t take a shot off, a shift off, a minute or a second as far as rebounds, everything,” NHL Network analyst Ken Daneyko said. “He is always fighting, battling to keep the puck out of the net. … For me, just watching Hellebuyck he is a guy you just know is going to never quit on a play, even if it looks like a sure goal.”
Video: Hellebuyck makes the list of the Top 10 Goalies
6. Thatcher DemkoVancouver Canucks
The 26-year-old was among the NHL leaders in games (third) and wins (ninth) last season, going 33-22-7 with a 2.72 GAA, .915 save percentage and one shutout in 64 games (61 starts). In 72 games (69 starts) in his previous four seasons, he was 34-31-4 with a 2.93 GAA and .911 save percentage.
“He has been developing along the way,” Daneyko said. “… That progression for Demko has sort of gone uphill and it all started way back with that remarkable few games he played in the playoffs with the Vegas Golden Knights (in 2020).”
Video: Demko at number 6 on the top 10 goalie list
5. Ilya SorokinNew York Islanders
Sorokin was 26-18-8 with a 2.40 GAA last season, finishing second in save percentage (.925) among goalies who played at least 20 games. He also was second in shutouts (seven). In two NHL seasons, the 27-year-old is 39-24-11, ranking third in GAA (2.33) and second in save percentage (.923). He is tied with Fleury for second in shutouts (10) in that span.
“The way he played last year was insane and I think Islanders fans need to be extremely excited,” Dubnyk said. “He was a big prospect, he had a lot of hype coming over (from the Kontinental Hockey League), he was able to take a little bit of time and he is now there at that hype.”
Video: Ilya Sorokin at number 5 in NHL Network’s countdown
4. Jacob Markstrom, Calgary Flames
A finalist for the Vezina Trophy last season, Markstrom was 37-15-9 in 63 games and led the NHL with nine shutouts. Among goalies to play at least 20 games, he was third in goals-against average (2.22) and tied with Andersen for third in save percentage (.922). He also tied Darcy Kuemper of the Colorado Avalanche for fourth in wins. The 32-year-old set NHL career highs in wins, games played, starts (63), GAA, save percentage (minimum 10 games) and shutouts last season and has at least 22 wins in each of his past five seasons.
“Let’s talk about any other year without Igor Shesterkinhe would have been a lock for the Vezina,” Dubnyk said. “… all the tools are there, he is capable of [winning the Vezina]”
Video: Markstrom makes the top 5 of NHL Network’s countdown
3. Juuse Saros, Nashville Predators
Saros led the NHL in games played and starts (67 each), finishing 38-25-3 last season. He was third in wins and tied for sixth in shutouts (four). Among goalies to play at least 20 games, Saros was eighth in save percentage (.918) and tied Jack Campbell, then of the Toronto Maple Leafs, for 15th in GAA (2.64). The 27-year-old also faced the second-most shots (2,107), made the second-most saves (1,934) and led the position in time on ice (3,931:42).
“Stop the puck, and he does it as good as anybody,” Daneyko said. “At 5-11, he bucks the trend of today’s wave of NHL goalies that are all 6-3 and bigger because obviously the bigger you are, the more net you are going to cover but it doesn’t matter with him. … Saros is remarkable to watch.”
Video: Saros lands at third in NHL Network’s countdown
2. Igor Shesterkin, New York Rangers
Shesterkin won the Vezina Trophy last season and was a finalist for the Hart Trophy, awarded to the NHL MVP. He was 36-13-4 in 53 games (52 starts), and among goalies to play at least 20 games, he led the NHL in GAA (2.07) and save percentage (.935). Shesterkin was third in shutouts (six) and sixth in wins, and had a save percentage of at least .940 in 26 games. His .929 save percentage against opposing power plays was second in the NHL behind James Reimer of the San Jose Sharks. The 26-year-old was 10-9 with a 2.59 GAA and .929 save percentage in 20 postseason games to help the Rangers advance to the Eastern Conference Final. He is 62-29-7 with a 2.31 GAA and .928 save percentage in 100 regular-season games.
“Every decade or so, there comes along a goaltender, it doesn’t matter what league they play in, they are able to get to the best league in the world right away and be dominant,” Daneyko said. “And that’s what Shesterkin has done because of his athletic ability, his agility … He is a special goaltender. … He very well could have been No. 1 on this list.”
Video: Shesterkin just misses the top spot in the countdown
1. Andrei Vasilevskiy, Tampa Bay Lightning
Vasilevskiy, who has led the NHL or tied for the lead in wins each of the past five seasons, was 39-18-5 with a 2.49 GAA, .916 save percentage and two shutouts in 63 games last season. He won the Vezina Trophy in 2018-19 and has finished in the top five in voting in each of the past five seasons. Since 2015-16, the 28-year-old leads the NHL in wins (222) and is third in shutouts (27). Vasilevskiy helped the Lightning win the Stanley Cup in back-to-back seasons, playing every minute in the 2020 and 2021 playoffs. He was 16-7 with a 1.90 GAA, .937 save percentage and five shutouts in 23 games to win the Conn Smythe Trophy voted as playoff MVP in 2021.
“He’s big (6-3, 225), he’s flexible, he’s quick, he’s everything,” Dubnyk said. “It’s just crazy to watch. … It’s insane and then you combine that with the fact that he is a big-game player. We talked about if you could pick one goalie you would ever want to have in a big game it would be him, unanimous. You combine that with his talent and that’s why he’s No. 1 every year, pretty much.”
Video: Vasilevskiy claims the top spot in the countdown
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