2024 NHL Goalie Musical Chairs: Western Conference

Los Angeles Kings goaltender Darcy Kuemper

Credit: Apr 5, 2024; Raleigh, North Carolina, USA; Washington Capitals goaltender Darcy Kuemper (35) looks on against the Carolina Hurricanes during the first period against the Carolina Hurricanes at PNC Arena. Mandatory Credit: James Guillory-USA TODAY Sports

It’s tough being a goaltender in the modern NHL. Performance at the position year to year is so fickle that few teams entrust their No. 1s with big long-term contracts anymore. The likes of Juuse Saros are exceptions now. Of the 21 goaltenders to secure new contracts as UFAs since July 1, 13, or 61.9 percent, signed for one year, 20 of 21 signed for two years or fewer and no UFA goalie signed for more than three years.

Now you know what inspired the term Goalie Musical Chairs. Long-term security is rare for puck-stoppers in today’s NHL. It can be tough to remember who has gone where, so let’s break down all the changes in goal, crease by crease, starting with the Western Conference, where half the teams will display new looks in net for 2024-25.

STATUS QUO

Anaheim Ducks (John Gibson, Lukas Dostal)
Colorado Avalanche (Alexandar Georgiev, Justus Annunen)
Edmonton Oilers (Stuart Skinner, Calvin Pickard)
Minnesota Wild (Marc-Andre Fleury, Filip Gustavsson)
San Jose Sharks (Mackenzie Blackwood, Vitek Vanecek)
Seattle Kraken (Joey Daccord, Philipp Grubauer)
St. Louis Blues (Jordan Binnington, Joel Hofer)
Utah Hockey Club (Connor Ingram, Karel Vejmelka)

Calgary Flames (Stock down)

Dan Vladar
Dustin Wolf

(Out: Jacob Markstrom)

The Flames aren’t technically bringing in a new netminder, but they’re finally positioned to permanently promote top prospect Wolf from within after trading Markstrom to the New Jersey Devils in June. Wolf has been one of the best goaltenders outside the NHL, if not the best, for several seasons, having been named the AHL’s top goaltender in 2021-22 and 2022-23, taking home the MVP in the latter season, and delivering almost as good of a third act in 2023-24. Wolf, undersized at six-foot, didn’t look great across 17 appearances and 15 starts in the NHL this past season. But it was a small sample size on a team that was in constant transition and trading away veterans. He could not have less left to prove in the minors. It’s time to see what he can do with a longer leash at 23. Vladar will challenge for an equal share of the goaltending pie, especially early on, but the Flames surely hope Wolf wins the battle and becomes their No. 1 for years to come.

Chicago Blackhawks (Stock up)

Petr Mrazek
Laurent Brossoit (2 years x $3.3M)
Arvid Soderblom

To post a .907 save percentage on last year’s husk of a Blackhawks team was downright Herculean for Mrazek, and he earned the two-year extension at a $4.25 million AAV he signed in January. He’ll have true competition for the No. 1 job in Brossoit, however. On a per-60 basis, only Anthony Stolarz saved more 5-on-5 goals above average than Brossoit in Winnipeg last year. He was better than teammate and Vezina Trophy winner Hellebuyck relative to time on ice. Brossoit’s career high is just 24 games, though, so even a leap to 40 would constitute a big change in workload and a stiff test of his durability. Soderblom is the odd man out and will compete with prospect Drew Commesso at AHL Rockford.

Dallas Stars (Stock unchanged)

Jake Oettinger
Casey DeSmith (3 years x $1M)

(Out: Scott Wedgewood)

As reported by Daily Faceoff’s Sam Nestler in the days leading up to free agency, Wedgewood, one of the better backups in the league, priced himself out of Dallas. Stars GM Jim Nill quickly solved the problem by bringing in the reliable DeSmith, who has a .909 career SV% and has appeared in at least 20 games in five consecutive seasons. He had a career-worst .895 mark in 2023-24 with the Canucks, but that number is deceiving. He faced a difficult workload and actually graded out as above average in GSAA/60 at 5-on-5, ranking 19^th among 71 goalies who played at least 500 minutes. He’ll be a perfectly adequate Wedgewood replacement. Oettinger is unchallenged as the star No. 1 netminder, but he has run into some health issues under increased workloads the past couple seasons, so an experienced No. 2 is important for Dallas.

Los Angeles Kings (Stock down)

Darcy Kuemper (Acquired from WSH)
David Rittich
Pheonix Copley

(Out: Cam Talbot)

The Kings’ goaltending wasn’t good enough in the 2024 postseason, with Talbot and Rittich combining for a hideous .864 SV% against the high-flying Edmonton Oilers. But is Kuemper the answer? On one hand, bringing him in helped the Kings offload the final seven years of Pierre-Luc Dubois’ contract. On the other, they’re inheriting Kuemper, who is 34, for three more seasons at $5.25 million per, more than five times what they paid Talbot for a regular season that landed him in the All-Star Game. Kuemper won a Stanley Cup in Colorado two years ago but was a league-average stopper in Year 1 with the Caps and graded out as one of the worst goalies in the NHL last season. It’s debatable at best whether L.A.’s net is superior to what it was a year ago.

Nashville Predators (Stock unchanged)

Juuse Saros
Scott Wedgewood (2 years x $1.5M)

Out: Kevin Lankinen

Yaroslav Askarov’s future as a Nashville Predator is now cloudy. First off, the Preds committed to current starter Saros with an eight-year extension carrying a $7.74 million cap hit beginning next season. Then, GM Barry Trotz erased any lingering doubt about carrying Askarov as an NHL backup by inking Wedgewood to a multi-year deal. Askarov, one of the sport’s top prospects at his position, becomes tasty trade bait. He’s only 22 but has almost outgrown the AHL, having gone 56-29-6 with a .911 SV% over the past two seasons with Milwaukee, and he posted a .943 mark in his two NHL appearances this past season. He’s simply too good of an asset to marinate in the AHL when he’s blocked from a full-time NHL role for multiple seasons to come.

Vancouver Canucks (Stock unchanged)

Thatcher Demko
Arturs Silovs

(Out: Casey DeSmith)

Demko remains Vancouver’s unquestioned No. 1 and performs at an All-Star level when healthy, but durability continues to be a problem for him. The Canucks had to go three deep in net over the course of a single playoff series in Round 1 this spring, so it was important to secure themselves an experienced No. 3 now that Silovs has ascended to the No. 2 spot to replace De Smith. Jiri Patera, signed to a two-year, two-way contract, will fill that role. He has eight NHL games to his name and thus won’t be a total fish out of water if called into backup duty.

Vegas Golden Knights (Stock down)

Adin Hill
Ilya Samsonov (1 year x $1.8M)

(Out: Logan Thompson)

Goaltending was a major strength for Vegas this past season, with Hill and Thompson looking like world beaters for extended stretches and Thompson getting the opening playoff start despite the fact Hill was the Stanley Cup winning goalie of record the season prior. With Thompson dealt to Washington, Hill is now the clear No. 1. He hasn’t proven he can handle a true alpha workload, however. His career high is 35 starts and he battled injuries last season. That means Samsonov will be pressed into duty plenty. He ranks among the league’s most volatile and unpredictable goaltenders, capable of elite play for months at a time but also prone to implosions of confidence. His save percentages by month last year: .841, .905, .828, .939, .888, .926 and .865, with a waiving and AHL demotion mixed in for good measure. Goaltending will be a bit more of an adventure in Sin City this time around.

Winnipeg Jets (Stock down)

Connor Hellebuyck
Kaapo Kahkonen (1 x $1M)
Eric Comrie (2 x $825K)

(Out: Laurent Brossoit)

Hellebuyck pretty much lapped the field in his Vezina campaign, earning 31 of 32 first-place votes. He remained one of the NHL’s top workhorses, starting at least 60 games for the fifth time in his career. But his number of starts did decline for a second consecutive season, partially because he had such a great backup in Brossoit. Do the Jets still have that luxury? Kahkonen played on such a bad team in San Jose the past couple seasons that that’s difficult to grade out his play, but the .923 mark he posted in six starts as a New Jersey Devil after the trade deadline last year hinted at his untapped potential. Comrie returns for a third tour as a Jet. He was an excellent backup to Hellebuyck in 2021-22 but struggled in the seasons since on the lowly Buffalo Sabres. The Jets are crossing their fingers hoping one of these two can be the equivalent of Brossoit, but it’s no sure thing.

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