Pick a Goalie Prospect

[Rodgort]

Hey guys,

Here are the goalie prospects available in my league (On my radar at least)

I'm looking long term with these guys seeing as I own Holtby/Rinne/Murray

Ilya Sorokin NYI
Ville Husso STL
Scott Wedgewood NJ
Christopher Gibson NYI
Samuel Montembeault FLO
Igor Shesterkin NYR

Cheers!

How many can you take?

My picks would be Husso and Sorokin, with Husso closer (he really needs more love as I think he could supplant even Allen in STL within a few seasons - but goalies are voodoo too) and Sorokin farther away (~2018 his KHL contract ends) but you can't ignore that last season.

Then there are:
Wedgewood - has been extremely good, except he is behind 5-6 more years of Schnieder. So he'd be a back-up then likely moved
Gibson - beat out Wilson (I believe) for the starting role in the AHL but TO gave up on him too, so he may just turn out to be a good AHL goalie and ok back-up
Montembeault - Pretty good but he has to compete with Brittan too, and it seems pretty 50/50 to me right now
Shesterkin - Long term he could be a gem too, but admittedly I have not looked at him in a while

[Yonald]

Well i have 3 draft picks in the upcoming draft, I could take 3 goalies if I really wanted to

It's for our FA/2016 NHL draft prospects and I pick 17,20, and 30

Since we have 30 man rosters and keep all essentially I'll have to make a drop for my last pick if I decide to keep the pick (can forfeit which ends up happening a lot in the 3rd round)

[chuckcouples]

Why do people love goalies who dominated the KHL so much? Does anyone remember who dominated the KHL in 2014/15 before coming to the NHL for last season? Anders Nillson was unbelievable in the KHL 2 seasons ago and was cut from the Edmonton Oilers last year.

Can anyone name me two goalies who have been great in the KHL and have come over to the NHL and become a starting goalie, or even a good back up for multiple seasons?

I didn't think so.

Let's look at Sorokin's stats from last season:

28 GP, 17 W, 7 L, .953 SV%, 10 Shutouts, GAA of 1.06

Those numbers are definitely spectacular about it but let's just see who his back up goalie was and how he did.

20 GP, 13 W, 3 L, .921 SV%, 3 Shutouts, GAA of 1.66

Those numbers are also very good so this guy should be a highly rated NHL prospect as well. That is not the case, this is a guy who had his shot in the NHL and had a career GAA of 2.79 with a .904 SV% in 63 NHL games over 3 NHL seasons. The back up was Victor Fasth. Let's all remember that this team went 45-14-1 on the season so expectations should be tempered a bit.

[Axeman33]

Why do people love goalies who dominated the KHL so much? Does anyone remember who dominated the KHL in 2014/15 before coming to the NHL for last season? Anders Nillson was unbelievable in the KHL 2 seasons ago and was cut from the Edmonton Oilers last year.

Can anyone name me two goalies who have been great in the KHL and have come over to the NHL and become a starting goalie, or even a good back up for multiple seasons?

I didn't think so.

Let's look at Sorokin's stats from last season:

28 GP, 17 W, 7 L, .953 SV%, 10 Shutouts, GAA of 1.06

Those numbers are definitely spectacular about it but let's just see who his back up goalie was and how he did.

20 GP, 13 W, 3 L, .921 SV%, 3 Shutouts, GAA of 1.66

Those numbers are also very good so this guy should be a highly rated NHL prospect as well. That is not the case, this is a guy who had his shot in the NHL and had a career GAA of 2.79 with a .904 SV% in 63 NHL games over 3 NHL seasons. The back up was Victor Fasth. Let's all remember that this team went 45-14-1 on the season so expectations should be tempered a bit.

I think it comes down to goalies being so unpredictable and seeing a young guy like Sorokin, play so well against a higher calibre of opponent like he sees in the pro ranks of the KHL, makes people feel more confident on his abilities. Doesn't mean that's the case long-term, but it's certainly a positive sign. And it's not just the fact that he played so well in the KHL, it's the fact he played at what most consider the highest level of hockey outside of the NHL. Hell, it could have been the SHL and I would have been impressed and taken notice.

[BarryGettman]

Goaltenders from any league need to be eye-balled. Counting on GAA and SV% is a mistake, even at the NHL level. One day someone might come up with a fancy stat that is a bit more reliable... and when that day comes, goaltending prospects might actually be taken in the first round again.

Personally when I scout a goaltender, one of the things I am most interest in, is watching him go from one post to the next, when the play passes him behind the net. The more fluid and consistent that transition, the more likely I believe he can be molded into a reliable goaltender.

[Crazy Joe Davola]

Ville Husso if you've got enough patience, but Allen is clogging up his route to be a starter. Plenty can happen with both depth chart and development.