Quantity and quality both have their place in the realm of fantasy hockey goaltending. You can get by with one or the other, but more often than not your netminders need to have a healthy amount of both to help you win your league.
Logan Thompson is the picture of quality, ranking 24th in total minutes among goaltenders this season, yet ranking second in fantasy points. Andrei Vasilevskiy ranks third in fantasy points, but has done so through his ice time, which ranks third in the league.
Connor Hellebuyck, of course, is the picture of both, leading the NHL in both minutes and fantasy points (and we don't have to qualify either statement by saying "among goalies").
If you are playing fantasy hockey to win, you always need to be looking for a fresh goaltender. Let's see who is available from a quantity and/or quality perspective.
Jump ahead: Goalies | Power Play | Second chances
Quantity
From the quantity side of things, here are some available goaltenders as well as their rank in minutes and fantasy points among goalies since Jan. 1.
Mackenzie Blackwood, G, Colorado Avalanche: 28.4% available, No. 1 in minutes, No. 6 in fantasy points
Joey Daccord, G, Seattle Kraken: 44.5% available, No. 4 in minutes, No. 11 in fantasy points
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, G, Buffalo Sabres: 70.9% available, No. 6 in minutes, No. 22 in fantasy points
Elvis Merzlikins, G, Columbus Blue Jackets: 86.8% available, No. 12 in minutes, No. 18 in fantasy points
Quality
For quality, here are some available goaltenders with their fantasy points per 60 minutes (FPP60) this season as well as their ranking in that statistic among goaltenders with at least 400 minutes.
Leevi Merilainen, G, Ottawa Senators: 92.0% available, 4.78 FPP60, No. 1
Jakub Dobes, G, Montreal Canadiens: 89.5% available, 4.60 FPP60, No. 2
Anthony Stolarz, G, Toronto Maple Leafs: 52.5% available, 3.69 FPP60, No. 5
Frederik Andersen, G, Carolina Hurricanes: 33.6% available, 3.60 FPP60, No. 6
Linus Ullmark, G, Ottawa Senators: 16.5% available, 3.14 FPP60, No. 9
Both
Finally, here are the top targets based on blending both targets. These goaltenders are giving us quality and quantity of late. Here are some available goaltenders with their ranking in minutes since Jan. 1 and their ranking in FPP60 since Jan. 1 (minimum 200 minutes).
Darcy Kuemper, G, Los Angeles Kings: 43.9% available, No. 8 in minutes since Jan. 1, No. 7 in FPP60 since Jan. 1
Dustin Wolf, G, Calgary Flames: 32.0% available, No. 9 in minutes, No. 15 in FPP60
Cam Talbot, G, Detroit Red Wings: 46.7% available, No. 17 in minutes, No. 5 in FPP60
The delicate balance between quantity and quality will continue for all fantasy managers. While a workhorse netminder can provide steady production, elite efficiency can be just as valuable in the right situations. The best approach depends on your league type, as daily lineups can chase efficiency, and weekly locks need to set and forget.
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Goalie notes
Check out Canada, Finland, Sweden and the USA face off in the 4 Nations tournament beginning February 13th.
Detroit Red Wings in 53 games (four last week):
Cam Talbot (crease share season/week: 49.9%/48.1%, fantasy points season/week: 67.8/13.4, 47.1% available)
Alex Lyon (crease share season/week: 35.0%/51.9%, fantasy points season/week: 42.2/14.0, 95.2% available)
The resurgence continues for the Red Wings, with both goaltenders now getting in on the action. Talbot had an early edge, but if these two settle into a steady rotation, both will have value in daily lineup leagues.
New York Islanders in 52 games (four last week):
Ilya Sorokin (crease share season/week: 68.2%/76.1%, fantasy points season/week: 86.6/23.2, 15.3% available)
Semyon Varlamov (crease share season/week: 19.4%/DNP, fantasy points season/week: 3.4/DNP, 96.7% available)
Jakub Skarek (crease share season/week: 1.8%/23.9%, fantasy points season/week: -4.6/-4.6, 100.0% available)
Sorokin is making up for lost time. Admittedly, it's been a haul to get here and he's even been dropped in 15%of leagues, but no one has been better in 2025 on a per-start basis. Hopefully the loss of Mathew Barzal doesn't slow the Islanders' momentum.
Pittsburgh Penguins in 54 games (three last week):
Alex Nedeljkovic (crease share season/week: 45.1%/100.0%, fantasy points season/week: 35.0/18.6, 95.2% available)
Joel Blomqvist (crease share season/week: 16.4%/DNP, fantasy points season/week: 5.2/DNP, 99.3% available)
Wait, 18.6 fantasy points in three starts from Nedeljkovic? Do we need to do something? Not unless you have a time machine for this tidbit from the Jan. 27 Waiver Watch that suggested starting him: "No, it doesn't look like there is a lot of long-term value in this crease with Tristan Jarry now demoted. But this particular week includes the Sharks, Utah and Predators, three teams ranked in the top 10 for most fantasy points to opposing goaltenders."
Power-play notes
Look at some of J.T. Miller's best goals with the Canucks this season after his trade to the Rangers for a second stint in New York.
J.T. Miller, C, New York Rangers (available in 4.3%): The Rangers now have six players that should all be a part of the top power-play unit, but they can only choose five. Across the past three games, they've had three different looks: One without Miller, one without Vincent Trocheck and one without Chris Kreider. The one without Trocheck is the only unit that scored in those games and they posted an astronomical 11.12 shot attempts per two minutes across 3:25 of ice time. This could be bad news for Trocheck.
Thomas Harley, D, Dallas Stars (available in 32.7%): The injury to Miro Hesikanen will keep the star blueliner sidelined until after the 4 Nations Face-Off. Harley gets to be the power-play quarterback until then, and he's been absolutely stellar with the job. The top unit with Harley on the point has combined for two goals in 5:07 across the past two games since Heiskanen was hurt.
Charlie McAvoy, D, Boston Bruins (available in 12.6%): Back on the point again now that he's healthy, McAvoy has breathed some life into the Bruins advantage. The top unit has scored three power-play goals in the past two games while pacing 6.11 shot attempts per two minutes.
Morgan Frost, C, Calgary Flames (available in 93.9%): An immediate addition to the Flames' top unit, Frost joins a power play in need of a boost. There is fantasy value here if he can continue to average three-plus minutes per game on the advantage.
Aaron Ekblad, D, Florida Panthers (available in 60.7%): Back in the saddle and rocking the power play, Ekblad should be a lineup lock again. The Panthers have three power-play goals in three games with him back on the point. He doesn't have any points on the advantage, but he's there and will start picking some up.
Ondrej Palat, LW, New Jersey Devils (available in 98.7%): The replacement for the top unit with Nico Hischier out, Palat chipped in his second power-play point of the season last week. We'll see how Hischier is progressing after the 4 Nations Face-Off to determine if Palat has fantasy value after the break.
Josh Doan, RW, Utah Hockey Club (available in 99.6%): As the injuries stack up for Utah, Doan has stepped into a power-play role on the top unit. That said, the 4 Nations break might see both Logan Cooley and Dylan Guenther healthy when the NHL resumes, so this could be short-lived value.
Re-Addables?
Rather than go through a few fringe drop suggestions this week, with no one really standing out from the pack, I thought it would be a chance to offer regrets to two players I suggested ditching.
After reviewing all the "droppable" suggestions in this weekly column going back to the start of the season, two stand out as having reversed my position.
Patrick Kane, RW, Detroit Red Wings (rostered in 60.9%): On Nov. 26, I suggested that we all move on from Kane. To be fair, it was the right call at the time and stayed true for another month, butthe Red Wings coaching change over the holidays reinvigorated the team and Kane has been great since then. In fact, he's now scored more fantasy points in the 14 games since the coaching change than he did in the 29 games prior to the switch.
JJ Peterka, RW, Buffalo Sabres (rostered in 65.6%): This is the really bad one. On Dec. 10, I gave up on Peterka. He had recently been kicked from the top power play and the Sabres top line wasn't doing much. Boy, did I pick the wrong moment. On Dec. 10, Peterka had 1.38 fantasy points per game across 23 games, which felt like enough of a sample to bail. Since then, Peterka has met the fantasy threshold by averaging 1.73 fantasy points per game in 24 contests. Sorry, JJ!