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Jacob Markstrom and Daniel Vladar, Flames (combined 12-3-0, .942 Sv%, 1.69 GAA, 7 SO)
Both goalies have been fantastic. The Flames have rattled off four wins in a row, and they've also shut out their opponents in six of their last eight wins. That's an incredible ratio, and if Vladar keeps this up, Darryl Sutter would not hesitate to start him and give Markstrom more rest. Maybe he's softened a little since starting Miikka Kiprusoff 70-plus games a season, but it's an excellent tandem and Vladar is worth rostering if he starts playing more games.
Tristan Jarry, Penguins (5-2-2, .932 Sv%, 2.05 GAA in November)
The Penguins are taking flight. That's now three consecutive wins for Jarry, two via shutout, and the Pens passed a tough road test with flying colors, outscoring their opponents 11-1. Jarry's been excellent most of the season, but at least now the wins are starting to roll in. With the Canucks (twice), Isles, Habs and Kraken coming up, the Pens could really go on a run to make up lost ground in the tough Metro.
Jake Oettinger, Stars (3-0-0, .955 Sv%, 1.29 GAA)
The Stars couldn't have made Oettinger's job any easier, limiting the league's best offense to just 22 shots and gave them just one power-play opportunity. This is deja vu; Oettinger started as Anton Khudobin's backup last season, and had the Stars made the playoffs, there was a strong chance Oettinger would've started. With Braden Holtby injured,
Trending Up
Jacob Markstrom and Daniel Vladar, Flames (combined 12-3-0, .942 Sv%, 1.69 GAA, 7 SO)
Both goalies have been fantastic. The Flames have rattled off four wins in a row, and they've also shut out their opponents in six of their last eight wins. That's an incredible ratio, and if Vladar keeps this up, Darryl Sutter would not hesitate to start him and give Markstrom more rest. Maybe he's softened a little since starting Miikka Kiprusoff 70-plus games a season, but it's an excellent tandem and Vladar is worth rostering if he starts playing more games.
Tristan Jarry, Penguins (5-2-2, .932 Sv%, 2.05 GAA in November)
The Penguins are taking flight. That's now three consecutive wins for Jarry, two via shutout, and the Pens passed a tough road test with flying colors, outscoring their opponents 11-1. Jarry's been excellent most of the season, but at least now the wins are starting to roll in. With the Canucks (twice), Isles, Habs and Kraken coming up, the Pens could really go on a run to make up lost ground in the tough Metro.
Jake Oettinger, Stars (3-0-0, .955 Sv%, 1.29 GAA)
The Stars couldn't have made Oettinger's job any easier, limiting the league's best offense to just 22 shots and gave them just one power-play opportunity. This is deja vu; Oettinger started as Anton Khudobin's backup last season, and had the Stars made the playoffs, there was a strong chance Oettinger would've started. With Braden Holtby injured, Oettinger seems to have usurped Khudobin yet again. Oettinger is rostered in only 28 percent of Yahoo leagues and should remain the starting goalie for the time being. Even when Holtby returns, there's definitely a scenario where Oettinger plays well enough to stay put and the Stars rotate three goalies.
Stuart Skinner, Oilers (2-3-0, .928 Sv%, 2.44 GAA)
Skinner received no goal support and even though he allowed four goals, two were scored on the power play, one was a partial breakaway by Denis Gurianov and the fourth was a tipped point shot that he never saw. Mikko Koskinen is 5-1-0 and Skinner is 2-3-0 in November, but there's no question Skinner has been the better goalie; the only difference has been goal support.
Mike Smith is expected to be out until at least December, and the Oilers have games against Arizona and Seattle coming up, so that's a chance for two (presumably) easy wins for Skinner. He's rostered in 33 percent of leagues and definitely deserves a spot, but just be wary that with Koskinen struggling and Skinner being so inexperienced, there will be nights where the Oilers' goaltending might still end up losing them games despite their excellent offense. This is the second straight week both Oettinger and Skinner have deserved a write-up.
Ville Husso, Blues (2-0-0, .984 Sv%, 0.50 GAA)
Binnington allowed two goals in the first seven minutes before his offense rallied to earn him a 5-2 win against Vegas, which was just his second victory in November; otherwise, Binnington is 1-4-0 with a .898 Sv% in November. The Blues stubbornly stick with him, but if he continues to put up middling performances, it's time they give Husso a few more chances. COVID disrupted Husso's year after a shutout in his season debut, and he's allowed only one goal in two starts and looks vastly improved from last season.
The Blues play back-to-back on Nov. 26-27, which means Husso should draw at least one of those starts, and if the current trend continues, fantasy managers who have a quick trigger could really benefit. Husso is rostered in only six percent of Yahoo leagues and he's a highly speculative add, though the upside as the starter on a potential top-10 team is pretty intriguing.
Honourable Mention: John Gibson, Ducks; Scott Wedgewood, Coyotes; Frederik Andersen and Antti Raanta, Hurricanes; Marc-Andre Fleury, Blackhawks; Darcy Kuemper, Avalanche; Sergei Bobrovsky, Panthers; Jonathan Quick, Kings; Igor Shesterkin, Rangers; James Reimer, Sharks; Andrei Vasilevskiy, Lightning; Jack Campbell, Maple Leafs; Ilya Samsonov, Capitals; Connor Hellebuyck, Jets
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Alex Nedeljkovic and Thomas Greiss, Red Wings (past 4 combined: 0-3-1, .882 Sv%, 3.78 GAA)
It's hard to make sense of the Wings because they're so good at home (5-2-2) but awful on the road (3-7-1), especially Greiss, who has a .955 Sv%/1.52 GAA at home but .860 Sv%/4.85 GAA on the road. Nedeljkovic has been more reliable, but it's tough to say with the Wings; the general rule of thumb is to start Nedeljkovic against teams the Wings have a decent chance of winning while Greiss should be avoided in road starts.
The road record is a little skewed because Tyler Bertuzzi is not allowed to play in Canada, but a surprisingly competitive team at the beginning of the season is now slowly drifting backward. The Wings being in contention for a wild card is already a big leap from last season's 27th-place finish, and the truth is they're probably somewhere in between this season.
Philipp Grubauer and Chris Driedger, Kraken (combined 5-10-1, .873 Sv%, 3.37 GAA)
We might as well stick Grubauer and Driedger in this section for the rest of the season. A 5-2 win against the Caps aside, the Kraken continue to be horrendous in net. Driedger has been especially disappointing because he had been targeted well before the expansion draft, and yet he's nearly unplayable as the insurance plan behind a starting goalie who nobody thought would struggle this much.
Is it time to dump Grubauer? Now would be a little too early, considering he's still getting the lion's share of work, but that we're even entertaining this conversation means Grubauer's fantasy value has fallen to the point where he's almost unplayable. Almost.
Semyon Varlamov and Ilya Sorokin, Islanders (past 6 combined: 0-6-0, .887 Sv%, 3.86 GAA)
It's been an ugly six-game stretch, including back-to-back home games in their new barn after a grueling 13-game road trip. There's no jump with this team that's missing basically its entire second line and top pairing. And with the way the Isles play — hold but don't break and limit shots to the outside — isn't conducive to wins when their goaltending has been subpar.
The Isles were dominant at home in their final season at Nassau (21-4-3), and they'll be hard-pressed to match that now that they're behind 0-2-0. Until the Isles get healthy and the goaltending gets better, there's probably more losses coming with two games against the Rangers and another against the red-hot Pens.
Dishonourable Mention: Dustin Tokarski and Aaron Dell, Sabres; Elvis Merzlikins, Blue Jackets; Cam Talbot, Wild; Samuel Montembeault, Canadiens; Jordan Binnington, Blues; Robin Lehner, Golden Knights
