Recently, I surveyed the staff here at drive4five to find out who they think are the Top 10 Goaltenders in the National Hockey League right now. Following the survey, I tallied up all of the lists as a points system (ex. first place is ten points, second place is nine points, etc.) After calculating the totals for each goaltender, I then ranked the consensus top 10 using each players’ point total. In total, ten writers submitted their lists, which means that the number one goalie could get a maximum of 100 points.
Before moving on to the top ten, there were ten other goalies to receive at least a vote: Semyon Varlamov (NYI, 1 point), Carter Hart (PHI, 1 point), Devan Dubnyk (MIN, 1 point), Jusse Saros (NSH, 2 points), Matt Murray (PIT, 4 points), Darcy Kuemper (ARI, 4 points), Martin Jones (SJS, 5 points), Connor Hellebuyck (WPG, 8 points), Jordan Binnington (STL, 9 points), and Robin Lehner (CHI, 14 points). Now, on to the top ten.

#10 – Pekka Rinne, Nashville Predators (15 points)
Rinne, now 36, is as good, if not better than he was in his twenties. During the 2018-19 season, he put up a 30-14-4 record, four shutouts, a 2.42 goals-against average and a .918% save percentage. His only problem is his inconsistency in goal during the Stanley Cup Playoffs, where his only good showing was in the 2016-17 season where the Predators made it to the Stanley Cup Finals. Now, with a revamped core with the subtraction of P.K. Subban and the addition of Matt Duchene, look for the Predators to back Rinne with some more scoring, especially when April rolls around.

#9 – Frederik Andersen, Toronto Maple Leafs (26 points)
Frederik Andersen has been one of the most consistent goaltenders in the National Hockey League since his debut with the Anaheim Ducks in 2013-14. Entering his fourth season as the starting goaltender for the Toronto Maple Leafs, Andersen has spent the last three seasons on the top of the leaderboards in wins, goals-against average, and save percentage. With his contract expiring after next season, the Leafs need to prepare for the worst: spending even more money or watching their all-star goalie walk.

#8 – Tuukka Rask, Boston Bruins (33 points)
The only team he knows how to beat in the Stanley Cup Playoffs is the Toronto Maple Leafs. For the rest of it, he gets a lot of help from the team in front of him. The complete irony that Rask, 32, is ranked right ahead of his opponent in those series shows that he is the better goalie. Well, the stats show it, too. He has a career .921% save percentage and a 2.28 goals-against average in 12 seasons, all with the Bruins (Raycroft for Rask).

#7 – John Gibson, Anaheim Ducks (35 points)
You know the story of that one person on your gym basketball team that scores 20 points in a 24-18 win? That’s John Gibson for the Anaheim Ducks. Since the Ducks traded Frederik Andersen (when Gibson took over as starter), he has a record of 82-56-24 with a .922% save percentage and a 2.50 goals-against average. With the Ducks in full-rebuild mode and Gibson committed to the team with a brand-new eight-year contract in place starting this year, Gibson is the answer for the Ducks goaltending for the long-term, no matter the situation.

#6 – Marc-Andre Fleury, Vegas Golden Knights (40 points)
The Pittsburgh Penguins casualty of the expansion draft, Fleury has been one of the most important assets to the early success of the Vegas Golden Knights. Fleury is 64-34-4 with four shutouts, a .919% save percentage and a 2.40 goals-against average as the starter for Vegas the past two seasons. This season is the first year of a new three-year contract he signed with Vegas, and it looks like he will be the starter in Vegas for the rest of his career.

#5 – Carey Price, Montreal Canadiens (51 points) 
This wouldn’t be a top ten goalies list without the goalie that is widely considered as one of the, if not the most dominant goaltender of this generation. Price had another spectacular season last year, finishing 35-24-6 with four shutouts, a 2.49 goals-against average and a .918% save percentage. Price is entering year two of a massive eight-year contract that was highly critiqued by the entire NHL, and it still is. Hopefully, Price is back to his Vezina self to help the Canadiens get back to the playoffs this season.

#4 – Braden Holtby, Washington Capitals (61 points) 
Islanders fans know too well how good of a goaltender Braden Holtby is. These past two seasons were not as flashy as the two before, as he has struggled in the regular season (yes, even before the Stanley Cup win, he struggled). His save percentage went from the .920’s to the high .900’s and low .910’s, and his goals-against average went from 2.00 to almost 3.00. Other than that, Holtby is still a great goaltender. Holtby is a UFA after the season, so the Capitals have to act fast or he will be gone before you know it.

#3 – Ben Bishop, Dallas Stars (70 points) 
This past season, Ben Bishop was in peak form. At the age of 32, he put up numbers not even Price can put up, going 27-15-2 with seven shutouts, a 1.98 goals-against average, and a .932% save percentage. Add on the fact that he is (and always has been) a freakishly tall goaltender standing at six-foot-seven, and you’ve got yourself a dominant goalie. Bishop is entering year three of a six-year contract with Dallas, so the Stars are going to have the ability to watch the Vezina runner-up play for four more seasons.

#2 – Sergei Bobrovsky, Florida Panthers (73 points)
So… the money speaks for itself. Bobrovsky is one of the best goalies in the NHL, and is the only remaining two-time Vezina winner in the league, winning it in 2012-13 and 2016-17. Now, Bobrovsky is taking his talents to Florida on a new-look Panthers team, lead by captain Aleksander Barkov and players such as Jonathan Huberdeau, Mike Hoffman, and Keith Yandle. The only concern with Bobrovsky’s move to Florida is the contract. He got paid. $70 million over seven years is much more than any other team was willing to pay for his services. There is a ton at stake for the Panthers as they look to make the playoffs for the first time since the Islanders knocked them out in 2015-16.

#1 – Andrei Vasilevskiy, Tampa Bay Lightning (97 points)
Are we not surprised? Playoffs aside, Vasilevskiy was the best goaltender in the National Hockey League this season, and that is why he is the reigning Vezina Trophy winner. He ended the year with a 39-10-4 record, six shutouts, a .925% save percentage, and a 2.40 goals-against average. The Lightning only expect more from him as his career goes on since he is only 25, not even reaching his peak yet. Vasilevskiy was supposed to be an RFA following the season, but that is no longer the case as he agreed to an eight-year extension this past month worth $9.5 million a season. Vasilevskiy is heading into his fourth year as a starting goaltender, and the Lightning hope he can step up his game even more than he already has in the past few years.

Who do you think are the top ten goalies in the NHL right now? Leave your list in the comments below and lookout for the next list – the top 10 defensemen!

SEF