Goalie "Studs and Duds" From Weeks 5 and 6
Which Goalies Had Good Fantasy Weeks? And Who Didn't?
I missed last Sunday’s edition as I was out of town visiting my sister and brother-in-law in Biddeford, Maine, for my niece’s baptism. Then the week got super busy at work so that I couldn't write it later. Thus, I decided to hold off on “Studs and Duds” for week five and instead do a combined week five and six post in this edition.
The week wasn’t totally bereft of posts on Goalie Streamer. I wrote an Underdog Fantasy post with four player picks for Saturday’s slate.
Underdog Fantasy Picks for November 15th
It’s been a busy week, which explains my lack of a “Studs and Duds” post for Week 5. Thus, I am going to do a combined Week 5 and 6 post on Sunday, and try to write a “streamer” post on Thursday for the weekend of Week 7.
I hit on the Seider over 2.5 shots pick. Unfortunately, my Geekie, Aho, and Bedard over points picks all fell flat, as they combined for zero points on Monday. I plan to do more picks posts in the future, though I think I'll do more of those DFS picks on Sleeper, which seems more NHL- and hockey-friendly than Underdog.
Most of you follow me here on Substack or Bluesky, but I have a dedicated Twitter account for Goalie Streamer that can be found here. In addition to sharing my posts from Goalie Streamer there, I will also be posting some hockey-related content on Twitter, whether it’s fantasy hockey, the NHL, WHL, ECHL, or AHL.
Streaming for Week Seven
Here’s how Week 7 looks schedule-wise via TJ Stats and his fantasy hockey schedule summary app.
Boston (5.1), Buffalo (4.9), and Carolina (4.8) have the best schedules this week, with not only four games, but four off-night contests to boot. Teams to avoid include Pittsburgh (1.9), Ottawa (1.7), Philadelphia (1.4), and Nashville (0.8). So if you’re looking for help on the waiver wire, go with the three above and try to avoid teams from the four below to maximize your streaming value.
Speaking of streaming, my streamer skater of the week is Mason Lohrei, a defenseman for the Bruins.
With injury issues to Charlie McAvoy and Hampus Lindholm, Lohrei has gotten extended time on the ice, including time on the Bruins’ primary blue line. He has eight points in his last seven games, and is sporting a shooting percentage of 18.2%, a PTS/60 of 2.3, and a PDO of 1,024 this season. Lohrei also provides some nice value with blocks, as he has 18 for the year and is averaging 1.20 per game.
Lohrei doesn’t get in the box much, as he is only averaging 0.13 PIM. Thus, those in extreme banger leagues where PIM is a scoring category may want to look for other options. For the season, the 24-year-old American is averaging 17:19 TOI and 1:37 PP TOI, not bad for a defenseman who is available in 96% of Yahoo leagues, as of Sunday.
Now, let’s move on to our goalie “Studs and Duds” from the previous two weeks.
Stud: Jeremy Swayman, BOS (85% Rostered)
The Boston goaltender has been a brick wall for the Bruins, who sit in first place in the Atlantic Division with 24 points. Swayman has five wins and five quality starts in his last five games. Over that time span, he also has a 2.37 GAA, .923 save percentage, and 3.97 GSAA.
A Tier 2 goalie going into the season, the 26-year-old goalie ranks ninth overall in KKUPFL scoring with 69.3 FPTS in 12 games played. He also sports a 2.99 GAA, a .902 save percentage, a 1.80 GSAA, and a Quality Start% of 75%.
The combination of Swayman’s solid goaltending, and him being between the pipes for one of the league’s better teams has made the American one of the better goalies in fantasy hockey to start the season, even with Jonas Korpisalo getting decent time as a backup (eight games).
Dud: John Gibson, DET (32% Rostered)
After spending his entire career with the Ducks, Gibson came over to Detroit to give Cam Talbot some help in the net. So far, it hasn’t been a friendly transition to Motown for 32-year-old goalie.
In 11 starts this year, Gibson only has four wins and a winning percentage of 36%. He sports a 3.31 GSAA and .875 save percentage with a -5.88 GSAA. His quality start% is medicore at 36% and his Really Bad Start percentage is close to that QS% at 27%. A nine percent difference between those two metrics isn’t an encouraging sign going forward for the former Anaheim goaltender.
The last two weeks haven’t been kind to Gibson. In four starts, he doesn’t have a win and he has only one quality start in his last five. Over the last two weeks, he has a 3.30 GAA, 0.876 save percentage, and -2.01 GSAA. Talbot has been better with a 2.82 GAA and .894 save percentage, as well as six wins in 10 starts.
If Gibson’s cold streak continues, the Red Wings may opt for the older Talbot in the net way more often going forward.
Stud: Yaroslav Askarov, SJS (51% Rostered)
Not too long ago, I was talking about how Askarov was a dud, especially after a cold start to the season.
Goalie "Studs and Duds" From Week 3
It’s been a while since I posted here, and I thought this publication would go the way of the Dodo. However, after a few weeks of playing fantasy hockey (I am in two leagues again: one points league, the KKUPFL, and one categories league, both on Yahoo), I got the itch to do some fantasy hockey analysis. Thus, I have fired up the old Substack again with…
However, over the past two weeks, the Russian goalie has demonstrated why the Sharks acquired him from the Predators a couple of seasons ago.
In his last four starts, Askarov is 4-1 with 0.99 GAA, .971 save percentage, and 12.51 GSAA. Frankly, the 23-year-old has been elite between the pipes for San Jose, and his four wins and five quality starts in his last five games illustrates that.
The overall stat line has stabilized a bit for Askarov, who has accumulated 60.3 FPTS in KKUPFL, putting him ahead of other goalies like New Jersey’s Jake Allen and Edmonton’s Stuart Skinner. For the season, he sports a 3.00 GAA, .905 save percentage, and 2.95 GSAA. That puts him as one of the top 20 goalies in fantasy hockey right now.
The primary concern with Askarov is the Sharks blue line, which gives up a lot of shots. When Askarov is locked in, he’s going to produce a lot of saves. When he’s not, it’s going to get ugly, as was the case earlier in the year. That said, with the Sharks looking better than a year ago, he deserves to be rostered in more than 51% of leagues.
Dud: Calvin Pickard, EDM (10% Rostered)
The Oilers are treading water in the middle of the Pacific Division and Western Conference with 22 points. As has been the case with Oilers teams in the past, the goaltending has been good, but still suspect at times.
Skinner is doing fine with a 7-4-3 record in 14 starts and 2.77 GAA and .890 save percentage. Unfortunately, that hasn’t been the case for Pickard, Edmonton’s backup, who has been brutal this season in limited action.
In seven starts, Pickard has only two wins and one quality start. His GAA is 4.17, his save percentage is 0.830, and his GSAA -10.62. All those are below-average marks and explains why his rostered percentage is low at 10 percent.
It’s been particularly brutal over the past two weeks, as he is sporting a 5.26 GAA, 0.809 save percentage, and -6.00 GSAA. Oiler fans understand that Pickard, even as a backup, is a problem for Edmonton and their Stanley Cup hopes. However, with a barren goalie market, they will have to hold onto him for now.
Stud: Jesper Wallstedt, MIN (14% Rostered)
The Wild have been a hot defensive team recently, with only two goals allowed in their last three games. While the blue line deserves credit, the Minnesota goaltending has also stepped up big time, especially Wallstedt, a 23-year-old rookie.
In his past three games, the Swedish goalie has three wins, two shutouts, a 0.67 GAA, a .978 save percentage, and 7.37 GSAA. Over a larger sample, he has four wins and five quality starts in his six appearances this season, complete with a 2.10 GAA, .924 save percentage, and 4.61 GSAA.
As a result of this stellar start, Wallstedt is now 14% rostered in Yahoo leagues. That makes him an ideal streaming candidate for those in dire need of goalie help.
He does still hold a backup role to fellow Filip Gustavsson, who has five wins this year as well as a 2.99 GAA, 0.898 save percentage, and GSAA of 0.23 this year. However, many of Gustavsson’s categories are down, including his 57.1% quality start percentage, which is an 11.9% decline from a year ago.
If this performance continues from the Wild’s primary goalie, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Wallstedt steal more starts going forward.
Dud: Charlie Lindgren, WAS (8% Rostered)
The Capitals are a mess. They sit in last place in the Metropolitan Division with 18 points and the team has seemed to show its age and decline, much like star player and future Hall of Famer, Alex Ovechkin. While the offense has been a problem (only 51 goals scored, tied for last in the division), the blue line has actually kept the Capitals competitive (48 goals allowed, tied for lowest in the division).
The goaltending for the Capitals has been strong, but that is mostly due to primary goalie Logan Thompson. The former Golden Knight has a 1.85 GAA, .924 save percentage and 11 quality starts in his 13 games played this season. His 72.6 FPTS are the sixth-best mark for goalies in KKUPFL this season.
It hasn’t been as rosy for Lindgren, the Caps’ backup.
The 31-year-old American goalie is on a cold streak, with zero wins and quality starts in his last four games. Over the past two weeks, he has only made two starts, and he has produced a 3.42 GAA, 0.870 save percentage, and -1.44 GSAA in those pair of outings. In five starts this year, he has a 3.59 GAA, .878 save percentage, and -2.86 GSAA with a 20% quality start percentage and 40% Really Bad Start percentage.
Lindgren hasn’t been terrible. That said, with Thompson so clearly entrenched as Washington’s main goalie, and the Capitals’ scoring struggles, he’s not even a great third goalie option. He won’t get many outings, the stats aren’t great, and it’s unlikely that he’ll steal any wins unless Washington’s attack turns it around soon.
By the time he does turn it around, he may not be around in the Nation’s Capital.
Photo Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports