Goalie "Studs and Duds": Week 7
Which Goalies Had Good Fantasy Weeks? And Who Didn't?
I skipped the Week 6 edition of this series, mostly because I wanted a larger sample to gauge which goalies had been “studs” in fantasy and those who have been “duds” lately. Thus, I am moving this to an every-other-week piece, so I have a better data set to determine which goalies stood out in good and bad ways.
With only one game on Sunday (Utah and Toronto), let’s examine three “studs” and “duds” at the goalie position as we reach the end of Week 7 of fantasy play.
Stud: Joey Daccord, SEA (79% rostered)
It’s been a solid stretch for the Kraken goaltender, who has had four wins and five quality starts in his last five games. In addition to having a shutout on 24 shots against Nashville on November 20th, he also has a 1.42 GAA and 0.945 SV% over the past two weeks.
For the season, Daccord has been one of the better goaltenders in the game, which makes sense considering he was deemed a tier 2 goalie and ranked 11th in Dobber’s Top 100 Goalie list in the preseason.
In 14 games played with Seattle, he has a 9-4-1 record with ten quality starts, a GAA of 2.30 and a SV% of 0.922. His GSAA is 8.28, and his second straight year has been this high (17.38 last season with the Kraken). He doesn’t have a single Really Bad Start this year, much needed for a 21-point Kraken team that is only above the Ducks (19) and Sharks (17) in the Pacific Division.
The only knock on Daccord is that he hasn’t been as good on the power play. He has a 0.875 PP SV% over his last five games compared to a 0.955 EV SV%. However, that’s pretty nitpicky, and it shouldn’t deter any fantasy managers who roster Daccord from playing him every time he starts.
Dud: Connor Ingram, UTA (45% rostered)
Ingram only made two starts in the last two weeks, as he is currently on the shelf with an upper-body injury for an indeterminate amount of time. However, he was bad in that small sample, and his season-long stats aren’t encouraging.
In the past two games, the 27-year-old goalie gave up seven goals on 33 shots, resulting in a 5.66 GAA and 0.788 SV%. Furthermore, his GSAA was -3.77, which is pretty low for such a small sample of appearances.
Unfortunately for managers who roster Ingram, the last two weeks indicate his overall struggles this season. He only has a Quality Start % of 23 percent, and his Really Bad Start % matches that mark. His GAA is 3.61, and his SV% is 0.871, a significant regression from a season ago (2.91 GAA and 0.907 SV%). Lastly, Ingram also has a GSAA of -10.37, nearly 15 goals worse than what he produced in 23-24 in the last season of existence for the Coyotes.
Karel Vejmelka has stepped in for Ingram in his absence, and the 28-year-old Czech goalie has a GAA of 2.21, an SV% of 0.927, and a QS% of 55.6% in nine games. I suggested Vejemelka as a pickup for this weekend’s slate of games, and he could also be a long-term piece for fantasy managers, even if Ingram returns healthy.
Stud: Alexandar Georgiev, COL (79% rostered)
Remember how bad Georgiev was at the beginning of the year? His struggles were a big reason I encouraged fantasy managers to add Justus Annunen as a possible option between the pipes for their respective teams.
Three Rookie Goalies to Target in Week 7
As one can see, I have migrated back from Wordpress to Substack. It was a tough decision, but I am debating merging a couple of other projects to Substack, so it made sense to do a test run with Goalie Streamer (though a previous incarnation was on this platform so it’s not a complete mystery to me). If you followed the other site at all, it will not be…
However, the Bulgarian-born Avs goalie has been on an absolute tear in the past two weeks.
Georgiev has four wins and two quality starts in his last four games for Colorado, and he has also produced a 2.58 GAA and 0.905 SV% over that sample. His GSAA isn’t all that impressive at 0.43 over the past two weeks, but it’s better than his -8.09 GSAA for the year. Furthermore, he has succeeded in special teams, with a 1.000 PP SV% and 0.923 Short-Handed SV% over his last four starts.
The 28-year-old Goalie One in Colorado hasn’t produced eye-popping metrics over the past two weeks, but it’s a sign that he’s finally getting it together between the pipes after a rough start to the season. His QS% is only 25%, his GAA is 3.37, and his SV% is 0.875 as of Sunday. Thus, he has a long way to go to being the fantasy goalie he was last season and the year before.
The past two weeks, though, are a step in the right direction, and hopefully, he’ll be able to produce more stretches like that this season to boost his overall numbers.
Dud: Kevin Lankinen, VAN (64% rostered)
It’s been a rough couple of weeks for the Canucks primary goaltender, which is not a good sign for a Vancouver club that is in the middle of the pack of the Pacific division with 23 points.
In his past five games, Lankinen is 2-3-0 with 19 goals allowed on 136 shot attempts against. His GAA is 4.00, SV% is 0.860, and GSAA is -5.67 over the past two weeks of play. He has only had one Quality Start over his past five games and two Really Bad Starts, producing 20% and 40% marks, respectively.
Lankinen has filled in for Thatcher Demko well this year. The Finnish goalie has a GAA of 2.74, an SV% of 0.901, and a QS% of 57% in 14 games played. However, Demko and other Cancuks are expected to return from injury soon, which will lessen Lankinen’s role on this Vancouver team.
The past two weeks don’t give fantasy managers much hope that Lankinen will see a fair share of playing time when Demko is fully healthy again.
Stud: Dustin Wolf, CGY (70% rostered)
The Flames’ rookie goaltender has been the real deal this year, and the last two weeks have only cemented his status as one of the most productive goalies in fantasy this season.
Wolf is 4-0 in his past four games with a 100% QS%. Over the last two weeks, he has allowed only four goals on 112 shot attempts and produced a GAA of 0.98, an SV% of 0.966, and a GSAA of 7.37. He also has an EV SV% of 0.962 and a PP SV% and SH SV% of 100% over his last four appearances.
Unsurprisingly, those numbers aren’t far from what he’s done overall this year.
In 11 games played, the 23-year-old has eight wins, a 73% QS%, a 2.33 GAA, an 8.20 GSAA, and 0.926 SV%. He also only has an RBS% of 9.3%, showing that he can consistently be depended on in Calgary despite his youth. That isn't easy, especially with a Flames team with 27 points and only one point behind the division-leading Vegas Golden Knights in the Pacific Division.
Wolf is still available in 30% of Yahoo leagues, and if he is available in one’s league, that needs to change immediately.
Dud: Alex Nedeljkovic, PIT (9% rostered)
The return of Tristan Jarry makes Nedeljkovic’s days in Pittsburgh feel numbered, even with the Penguins goalie situation unclear. Joel Blomqvist is back in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, so Nedeljkovic remains in the Penguins goalie rotation.
However, the last two weeks may expedite Nedeljkovic’s exit from Pittsburgh.
In his last four games, he is 1-1-1 with 16 goals allowed on 122 shots. He has a 4.07 GAA, 0.869 SV%, and -4.04 GSAA, and he didn’t have a quality start in that stretch. Additionally, he had a Really Bad Start on Saturday against Utah, as he allowed six goals on 30 shot attempts (6.01 GAA, 0.800 SV%, -3.06 GSAA).
With a 27% QS%, 3.42 GAA, -7.62 GSAA, and 0.877 SV% in 11 games played, it’s not surprising that Nedeljkovic is available in 91% of Yahoo leagues. It seems like a matter of time before Blomqvist is ready to return to Pittsburgh in some capacity, whether as a starter or backup to Jarry. That impending transaction should further plummet Nedeljkovic’s rostered percentage in fantasy leagues.
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