Goalie performances are always a key to team outlooks. This week we highlight a few who are trying to drive their teams to better days but also a few who could sink along with their teams, unless they can turn things around and approach career norms.
Find out who is expected to be between the pipes with RotoWire's NHL Starting Goalies page!
Risers
Joey Daccord, Kraken
Daccord was on the wrong side of this list last week but rebounded with three strong performances, which led him to be the top performer at the position according to key fantasy hockey metrics. He notched two wins, while allowing only six goals and turning aside 80 of 86 shots on goal (.930 Sv%).
The Kraken were not expected to be among the top clubs in the Pacific Division, but they are currently in second place. If they expect to continue to compete, they'll be leaning heavily on the defensive side of the puck battles. Daccord has also edged ahead of his tandem partner, Philipp Grubauer, in earning eight of the first 10 starting assignments here.
Jakub Dobes, Canadiens
Entering this season, Dobes was expected to resume the same role he had last season, in backing up Sam Montembeault, who was one of the busiest goalies in the NHL last season.
Instead, Dobes made three impressive appearances last week, all wins, to continue his personal undefeated streak of six straight wins to start this season. Meanwhile, Montembeault has struggled,
Goalie performances are always a key to team outlooks. This week we highlight a few who are trying to drive their teams to better days but also a few who could sink along with their teams, unless they can turn things around and approach career norms.
Find out who is expected to be between the pipes with RotoWire's NHL Starting Goalies page!
Risers
Joey Daccord, Kraken
Daccord was on the wrong side of this list last week but rebounded with three strong performances, which led him to be the top performer at the position according to key fantasy hockey metrics. He notched two wins, while allowing only six goals and turning aside 80 of 86 shots on goal (.930 Sv%).
The Kraken were not expected to be among the top clubs in the Pacific Division, but they are currently in second place. If they expect to continue to compete, they'll be leaning heavily on the defensive side of the puck battles. Daccord has also edged ahead of his tandem partner, Philipp Grubauer, in earning eight of the first 10 starting assignments here.
Jakub Dobes, Canadiens
Entering this season, Dobes was expected to resume the same role he had last season, in backing up Sam Montembeault, who was one of the busiest goalies in the NHL last season.
Instead, Dobes made three impressive appearances last week, all wins, to continue his personal undefeated streak of six straight wins to start this season. Meanwhile, Montembeault has struggled, in earning only two wins in his first five starts.
This is a results-driven league, and these early trends indicate that the distribution of future starts may be far different from what was originally expected here. Right now, Dobes looks like he's forging ahead and taking greater control of the Canadiens crease.
Jake Oettinger, Stars
In a 'wash, rinse, repeat' storyline among NHL netminders, we see that Oettinger has found his form early, in posting a 2.61 GAA through his first eight starts. While the team is struggling a little on offense, Oettinger's efforts have been a key factor the Stars 6-3-1 start.
His backup, Casey DeSmith, has not been overly impressive in his two starts, allowing seven goals against out of 51 shots, for a poor .863 Sv%.
Last week, Oettinger registered two wins and allowed only five goals in the face of 77 shots (.935 Sv%)
Clearly, the expectation remains that Oettinger will be a big part of the success that the Stars should anticipate during this season.
Thatcher Demko, Canucks
Demko entered this season with concerns about his ability to resume a large workload after an injury plagued last season. He is making a strong early statement to squash those sentiments, by starting seven of the Canuck's first 11 games and by outperforming Kevin Lankinen in the Canuck's netminding efforts to date.
Last week, he produced three effective starts, but earned only one win despite a solid .932 Sv%.
He's wasted little time in reclaiming the top spot in Vancouver's pecking order.
Darcy Kuemper, Kings
Kuemper landed in a very good situation with the defensive-minded Kings last season and posted the best statistical year of his career. This season, he has appeared in seven of the first 11 games and while his stats line is a solid one, it's a little less impressive than last year.
The Kings have started well and are already among the top clubs in the Pacific Division and it sure looks like they have what it takes to remain competitive.
Kuemper was undefeated in regulation time last week, posting a 2-0-1 record last week and remains a solid option to win, more often than not, behind a talented and deep roster in Los Angeles.
Tristan Jarry, Penguins
The Penguins have defied the experts, by rising to the top of the Metropolitan Division, with a 7-2-2 record. One of the key early season developments is a Jarry's solid work, in a tandem with Arturs Silovs. Jarry went through a difficult campaign last season, even spending time in the minors. It's a far different story so far this season, as he's off to a 4-1-1 start, along with a .262 GAA and .916 Sv%.
The Pens weren't expected to be as good as there are, with their 7-2-2 mark overall, so there remains some doubt about the ability to sustain these results.
Jarry is certainly riding this wave, but fantasy owners probably need to see this early trend continue for a few more weeks before committing to him.
Fallers
Jordan Binnington, Blues
The Blues have sunk to the bottom of the Central Division through the first month of the season and this drop is visible through the lens of Binnington's 2-4-1 mark, .863 Sv% and 3.27 GAA. These numbers are all well off his records from the last couple of seasons in tending goal for the Blues.
Last week, he lost all three of his starts, while allowing 12 goal against out of 64 shots (.812 Sv%).
He and his mates need to turn things around immediately or it's going to be a tough, long year for the Blues
Igor Shesterkin, Rangers
Last season, the Rangers rated as one of the biggest disappointments in the league and that reflected in Shesterkin's career-worst numbers across the board.
It's been a slightly different story out of the gate this season, as his 2.25 GAA and 916 Sv% are back in line with career norms
However, the Rangers offense is the big problem, as they've scored only 24 goals in 11 games.
While they have to expect that the scoring issues won't last, they have to feel very good about Shesterkin's return to top form.
Injury news
Joseph Woll, Maple Leafs
The Leafs had one of the best goalie tandems in the league last season.
The club has started off this season by stumbling out of the gate. One significant issue is that Woll missed training camp and the start of this campaign due to a personal issue. He is back skating at practice with the team and is probably only a few weeks from returning to play. He represents a solid pickup in fantasy leagues as he's expected to retain a high win probability for one of the league's more consistent teams of the last several seasons, once he returns.
