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Anthony Stolarz, Ducks (8-5-2, .930 Sv%, 2.26 GAA)
Lukas Dostal was assigned to AHL San Diego on Monday but recalled immediately the following day, a potential clue that John Gibson's injury might force him to miss more time. Stolarz has been excellent this season, pushing into a 1B role when many thought he'd be serviceable backup behind a workhorse starter in Gibson. Stolarz is rostered in just 24 percent of Yahoo leagues, and the surprising Ducks continue to be a source of good fantasy options.
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, Sabres (1-2-1, .939 Sv%, 1.99 GAA)
Luukkonen had to work hard for his first win, making 34 stops against the Jets and ending the Sabres' seven-game losing streak. He's started the last four games, including back-to-back games on Dec. 10-11 against the Caps and Rangers, but most impressively, has limited opponents to two goals or fewer every game. The 2017 second-round pick is seen as a potential starter down the road, but it seems like the moment has arrived a little sooner than expected.
The Rochester Americans, the Sabres' minor-league affiliate, allowed 11 goals Tuesday against Charlotte, so if Luukonen is going lose games, it might as well be with the big club. The peripheral stats might be good, but that might be it for Luukonen's fantasy value unless the Sabres offense improves and provides some goal support.
Braden Holtby and Jake Oettinger, Stars (combined: 10-8-1, .928 Sv%, 2.21 GAA)
The Stars found no takers for Anton
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Anthony Stolarz, Ducks (8-5-2, .930 Sv%, 2.26 GAA)
Lukas Dostal was assigned to AHL San Diego on Monday but recalled immediately the following day, a potential clue that John Gibson's injury might force him to miss more time. Stolarz has been excellent this season, pushing into a 1B role when many thought he'd be serviceable backup behind a workhorse starter in Gibson. Stolarz is rostered in just 24 percent of Yahoo leagues, and the surprising Ducks continue to be a source of good fantasy options.
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, Sabres (1-2-1, .939 Sv%, 1.99 GAA)
Luukkonen had to work hard for his first win, making 34 stops against the Jets and ending the Sabres' seven-game losing streak. He's started the last four games, including back-to-back games on Dec. 10-11 against the Caps and Rangers, but most impressively, has limited opponents to two goals or fewer every game. The 2017 second-round pick is seen as a potential starter down the road, but it seems like the moment has arrived a little sooner than expected.
The Rochester Americans, the Sabres' minor-league affiliate, allowed 11 goals Tuesday against Charlotte, so if Luukonen is going lose games, it might as well be with the big club. The peripheral stats might be good, but that might be it for Luukonen's fantasy value unless the Sabres offense improves and provides some goal support.
Braden Holtby and Jake Oettinger, Stars (combined: 10-8-1, .928 Sv%, 2.21 GAA)
The Stars found no takers for Anton Khudobin, but barring an injury, they will go with Holtby and Oettinger the rest of the season. In the short term, they will likely split the starts; Oettinger lost Tuesday against the Blues, the Stars' fourth consecutive defeat, which means Holtby likely will get Friday's revenge game against the Blues and Oettinger will play the second half of a back-to-back Saturday. Both goalies are worth rostering until one outperforms the other, though the wins might be difficult to come by because they have so much trouble scoring, especially when Roope Hintz is out of the lineup.
Mike Smith, Oilers (2-0-0, .920 Sv%, 3.08 GAA)
Smith did not dress in Tuesday's loss against the Leafs but is expected to return soon, which immediately bumps Mikko Koskinen back to the No. 2 role. If there wasn't any urgency before when the Oilers lost just once in 10 games with Koskinen, there definitely should be more now with five consecutive losses. Smith has not played since Oct. 19, so there might be some rust to start, but the Oilers really don't have anyone who can challenge him for the starting job. Smith seems to extend his career every time he plays for Dave Tippett, and his .920 Sv% ranks 22nd (min. 100 TOI) in the league. Smith is available in roughly a third of Yahoo leagues on a team that could still challenge for the division title when they snap out of their funk.
Anton Forsberg, Senators (past 5 starts: 5-0-0, .933 Sv%, 2.16 GAA)
Forsberg won his fifth consecutive game in an 8-2 trouncing of the Panthers, and for now has taken over the No. 1 job. The 29-year-old veteran has some experience, but he's been little more than a third-string goalie in the NHL with a career .903 Sv% and 3.23 GAA. His hot streak will eventually fade, so fantasy managers are holding on to a ticking time bomb; the Sens only outshot the Panthers by thr and remain one of the league's worst defensive teams, allowing nearly 63 shot attempts per 60 minutes at 5-on-5, according to naturalstattrick.com. The upside with the Sens' goalies, however, is that their offense can provide good goal support, so they're a sneaky add for the occasional win.
Chris Driedger, Kraken (past 3 starts: 3-0-0, .942 Sv%, 2.00 GAA)
Driedger continued where he left off, making 33 saves in his return from injury to secure his third win in a row. Given how poorly Philipp Grubauer has played all season, this is Driedger's chance to run away with the starting job. It won't be easy with the matchups against the Oilers and Leafs coming up, but at the very least, Driedger deserves a long look to be the No. 1.
Fantasy managers should look to stash Driedger just in case he does win the starting job, and the Kraken might go on a hot run sooner or later this season because the analytics say they're a much better team than their record suggests. Grubauer's still worth holding onto since Driedger is still unproven, and ditching Grubauer now when his value is seemingly at its lowest seems like a poor asset management decision because, presumably, a mid to high pick was used to select him in the fantasy draft.
Charlie Lindgren, Blues (4-0-0, .956 Sv%, 1.29 GAA)
Lindgren is the second goalie to make the list for the second straight week after winning his fourth consecutive home against the Stars in Dallas, which is quite the feat considering nearly half their lineup was just called up from the minors. Jordan Binnington remains in COVID protocol, but even when he returns, is there any rush to push Lindgren out of the crease when he's been playing so well? It's also a fairly easy stretch coming up; they play the Stars again Friday, this time at home, and then face the struggling Jets, Sens, Devils and Oilers in four of their next six games.
Honourable Mention: Frederik Andersen, Hurricanes; Darcy Kuemper, Avalanche; Jonathan Quick, Kings; Juuse Saros, Predators; Ilya Sorokin, Islanders; Carter Hart, Flyers; Tristan Jarry and Casey DeSmith, Penguins; Thatcher Demko, Canucks
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Spencer Knight, Panthers (6-4-2, .892 Sv%, 3.42 GAA)
It was supposed to be an easy win, but the Sens (and Andrew Brunette, actually) showed no mercy Tuesday and lit up Knight for eight goals on 38 shots. It was messy and ugly, and it just wasn't Knight's night. But, it also highlights how Knight has fallen short of expectations this season when many believed he'd challenge Sergei Bobrovsky for the No. 1 job. According to naturalstattrick.com's GSAA model, Knight ranks 75th out of 87 goalies who have played at least a game this season. He should remain the backup because they clearly don't trust Christopher Gibson very much, but you wonder if the Panthers will go out and grab another goaltender at some point this season.
Dishonourable Mention: Jacob Markstrom, Flames; Anton Khudobin, Stars; Thomas Greiss, Red Wings; Mikko Koskinen, Oilers; Semyon Varlamov, Islanders; Filip Gustavsson, Senators; Martin Jones, Flyers
