We are two weeks into the NHL season and many teams still have not seemed to settle in. Let's do a quick recap before we get into the Fantasy Hockey week 2 goalie report.
To no one's surprise, the Avalanche and Golden Knights are still undefeated. The one that I did not expect, even as a Boston fan, is the Bruins are also without a loss. I thought it was all over the minute Patrice Bergeron hung up his skates and retired.
Edmonton is still struggling to do anything well. Tragedy struck for Oilers fans as Connor McDavid is likely to miss 1-2 weeks with an upper-body injury. Leon Draisaitl has 49 points in 49 games without McDavid and will be once again tested to try and bring this team out of this slump.
Let's now get into the topic at hand and check in on goalies across the league. It's been a little hectic as the top-tier goalies have not looked amazing but we still have the rest of the season ahead of us.
2023-24 Fantasy Hockey Week 2 Goalie Report
Stock Up
Jake Allen, Montreal Canadiens (2-0-1, .929 SV%, 2.58 GAA)
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While I don't generally have many good things to say about the Canadiens, Jake Allen has looked pretty good in net. He started the season with a tough shootout loss to Toronto but has bounced back nicely.
He picked up two straight victories over Washington and Buffalo. I don't consider the Capitals a good team by any stretch, but allowing only one goal to the Sabres has impressed me.
The issue with Allen is the Canadiens are not a good team. This team is not expected to win many games but he is currently 16% rostered across leagues. I would much rather roster a goalie from a team I can count on to win. Still, if your current goalies are struggling to put up numbers, Allen is a guy who can fill in the gaps.
Jonathan Quick, New York Rangers (1-0, .964 SV%, 0.70 GAA)
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Jonathan Quick's first appearance as a Ranger came as a substitution after Igor Shesterkin gave up four goals on 18 shots. Quick was perfect on nine shots faced and followed this up with one goal allowed on 19 shots in a win over Seattle. Shesterkin will carry the brunt of the work in New York but Quick is going to be a great complimentary netminder.
The Rangers are expected to be a playoff team and play a great defensive game. We already know Quick's history as a winning goaltender and he is only 3% rostered across leagues. I would not expect the world from him as Shesterkin likely starts close to 60 games this year. Quick is definitely worth a look as the Rangers should win most of their games.
Stock Down
Jacob Markstrom, Calgary Flames (1-3-1, .897 SV%, 2.80 GAA)
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Markstrom hasn't looked terrible this year, but I expected more to start the season. Only two seasons ago he was being drafted as a top 10 goalie but he has not played like one. Top defenseman Rasmus Andersson is currently serving a four-game suspension which is not helping the cause.
He's not a goalie anyone is going to drop but benching him in favor of other goalies would not be crazy. Markstrom was unable to come away with victories against bad teams in Columbus and Washington. The Flames should be a much better team and he should record at least 20 wins.
Darcy Kuemper, Washington Capitals (1-2-1, .868 SV%, 3.67 GAA)
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I'm just going to say it. The Washington Capitals are a terrible team. They look like the slowest team in the league with the least effort put forward in all aspects of the game. The offense needs to wake up for Kuemper to see any wins in his future.
Kuemper won his first start and has been without a win in the three starts that followed. He is a very talented goalie but I have absolutely zero faith in this team. He's 79% rostered across leagues but I am expecting him to lose more games than he wins. He should see some positive regression at the least, but I do not feel comfortable starting him over many other goalies right now.
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