The Goalie Report: Risers and Fallers

This just hasn't been a banner year for Russian goalies. Most of them, anyway.

While Igor Shesterkin kept the Rangers in the Stadium Series on Sunday, he ended up allowing five goals on 41 shots, earning his third straight win but also posting a save percentage lower than .900 for the fifth time in seven games.

Ilya Sorokin, who was considered a Vezina candidate coming into the season and a top-tier fantasy goalie, allowed five goals on 37 shots, losing 10 seconds into overtime after blowing a 3-1 lead. It was a weird goal, with the puck crossing the line after the net was knocked off, but Sorokin's GAA is now 3.12, ranked 32nd out of 46 goalies with at least 20 appearances.

Andrei Vasilevskiy, the premier goalie of his generation, was chased after two periods after allowing six goals on 22 shots against the rival Panthers.

With the trade deadline approaching on March 8, this is crunch time. There's a good chance at least a few goalies will be moved, and the fantasy playoffs will start around March 18, depending on your league settings. Now's the time to identify the goalies you'll ride or die with for the rest of the season.

Here's this week's Goalie Report.

Trending Up

Nico Daws, Devils (6-6-0, 2.93 GAA, .912 Sv%)

Daws is 3-1-0 in four straight starts for the Devils and has obviously supplanted Vitek Vanecek for the starting job. The Devils didn't have much of a choice to begin with moving away from Vanecek, but to Daws' credit, he's really been quite good. Going forward, it's hard to envision the Devils going back to Vanecek unless Daws implodes or if they acquire another veteran goalie, which could force them to re-assign Daws to the AHL.

Spencer Martin, Hurricanes (with Carolina: 2-0-0, 1.50 GAA, .948 Sv%)

The Knights were a tough test for Martin, and he passed with flying colors. After getting claimed off waivers and losing Antti Raanta to injury, Martin has stepped in as Pyotr Kochetkov's backup and performed admirably. He's now 2-0-0 as a Hurricane, and given how volatile Kochetkov's play can be, Martin's performance ensures that he'll get more starts down the stretch. Depending on the matchup, Martin's worth keeping an eye on as a streaming option. The Canes have three more games against the Blue Jackets and two more each against the Blackhawks and Canadiens this season.

Trending Down

Andrei Vasilevskiy, Lightning (19-12-0, 2.90 GAA, .899 Sv%)

There's zero chance Vasilevskiy cedes more playing time to Jonas Johansson, who's barely able to serve as a backup some nights, but it's worth noting that the Lightning seem more prone than ever to some bad losses. Part of it is their lack of depth, as they lost Mikhail Sergachev (leg) to another serious injury in his first game back from a 17-game absence, but part of it is the fact that some of the Lightning's key players are older with a ton of mileage. There was a time where Vasilevskiy was a must-start in fantasy, but nowadays, managers have to be a little more cognizant of starting him against strong teams.

Alex Lyon, Red Wings (February: 1-2-0, 5.01 GAA, .827 Sv%)

We have to remember that Lyon is a career backup who has never shouldered a workload like this before. Even though he played a crucial role in securing a playoff spot for the Panthers, they didn't hesitate to make him the backup again once everyone was healthy and playing well. Lyon's allowed 11 goals in his past two games and the Wings still don't defend particularly well.

The Wings are also still carrying three goalies, with Ville Husso and James Reimer. Husso is injured, but he'll likely see at least some action upon his return. Reimer didn't play for a month but ended up shutting out the Flames, 5-0, on Saturday, and that performance will surely lead to more appearances. It's a crowded crease, and while Lyon is slated to start Monday against the Kraken, he'll need to perform well to keep the starting job. At this point, Lyon is a matchup play with a precarious hold on the No. 1 job.  

Juuse Saros, Predators (21-21-2, 3.02 GAA, .902 Sv%)

Saros was excellent with a 35-save performance in a 5-2 win against the Blues, and it snapped a five-game stretch where Saros allowed at least three goals in each game. He remains a workhorse who can rack up the saves, but his save percentage and consistency aren't what we've been accustomed to. Overall, Saros' play is trending down, and that's important to note because the Predators have a goalie waiting for an opportunity to ascend in Yaroslav Askarov.

Saros is going to fetch a mighty fine return in a trade, and his name has popped up in the rumor mill now and then. A trade to another team might give Saros a huge boost in fantasy, but his fantasy value is fading for the rest of the season. The Preds' top line has lost a ton of steam, and they've lost five of their past seven games. Unfortunately, dropping Saros isn't really an option unless there's another goalie you have your eye on who will either rack up the saves at the same rate or win more games. It's either hold or sell for Saros in fantasy.